REUNION
by G-Go
Summary: Kim Possible returns to Middleton High School for her Ten Year Reunion. Chock full of action, suspence, romance, and intrigue. Epilogue part of this COMPLETE, nutritious story.
1. Prologue

Obligatory disclaimers: Kim Possible, Ron Stoppable, Wade, Dr. Drakken, Shego, Lord Monkeyfist, Duff Killagin, The Entire Possible Family, Rufus, Professor Dementor, and all other characters and events that are manifestly (that means "obviously" but it makes me sound smarter) the work and creation of Mark McCorkle et al and owned by Disney are clearly not owned by me and I claim no such ownership.

However…

The characters of Lord Deathray, Ronin, Goliath Kilgore, Raymond Beam and any other characters and events not manifestly owned by Disney but created by me herein I hereby claim as mine. You know, just in case Disney comes barging through my door begging for the movie rights…

Be warned, it will take quite a few chapters to tell this one (ten years is a long time, after all), but if you grant me your patience, dear reader, I shall do my best not to disappoint.

And now, without further ado:

* * *

REUNION

* * *

Prologue

The car pulled into one of the few unoccupied parking spaces left in front of Middleton High School. The sign out front said "Welcome ten year reunion. Go Mad Dogs." They were a little late. This was due in part because she wasn't sure if they should come at all. She hadn't been back here since graduation, and everyone would be asking questions. But Monique had called and begged her to come, and to bring her fiancé with her. In agreement, her fiancé insisted they should go. Now, sitting in the car out in front of the school, she was wondering if it was a mistake to come.

They got out of the car and she felt a twinge of sadness upon seeing the front door. The school was smaller than she remembered. She heard music coming from inside. At first she couldn't place it, but then remembered. It was Smashmouth. This realization alone brought back a flood of memories, all crowding into her mind and demanding her attention. Smashmouth. That was the night of the dance, when Bonnie had been kidnapped by the Bebes. It had taken a week for the effects of the shoes to wear off, and then Ron had spent an afternoon helping her pry them from her feet. Ron… she stopped in her tracks.

What if Ron was here?

Monique had called from the reunion and assured her he wasn't. And it stood to reason that if he wasn't there by now, he wouldn't show up at all. But yet… back then Ron had an almost uncanny ability to read her mind. Sometimes he would be there when she needed him, without her having even called for help. Not just on missions, but times when she needed to talk to someone. Times when she needed a shoulder to cry on.

But maybe that was an effect that had worn off as well. Maybe he couldn't read her mind anymore. After all, she hadn't seen Ron in – what? – six years? Had it been that long?

"Sweetie?", her fiancé asked softly, "Are you alright?"

Maybe Ron could still read her mind, and wouldn't show up out of respect for her. But then this particular thought tore at her. She wanted to see him because it had been so long, but then she didn't want to see him, because it might be too painful, for both of them.

"No big," she told her fiancé lightly, "Just tripping down memory lane."

"Bad memories?" he guessed out loud.

Depends on how you look at it, she thought to herself. Out loud she said "Not all of them. High School, you know, plenty of drama."

"Yeah", he said halfheartedly. He could tell there was more than she was willing to let on, but said nothing else.

She stayed silent as well. They continued on to the front doors. The closer they got, the quicker her heart beat. She was eager to see Monique, and all the girls from the cheer squad. Maybe not Bonnie, but then she could deal with seeing Bonnie. If Ron was here she wouldn't know what she would do.

"Get a grip," she told herself silently, "As in FIRM! You're Kim Possible. You used to save the world on an almost weekly basis. You're twenty-seven years old now, not in high school anymore. You've faced death, you can face Ron."

But could she? She stopped when they got to the doors. She wasn't convinced of any of the things she had just told herself, even the fact that she was twenty-seven. She almost felt that if she stepped through those doors, she would revert to being a seventeen-year-old high school student. Just POOF and it would be ten years ago. It wasn't a farfetched idea, after all, she'd seen devices that could make someone tell the truth, tap the mind, make you smarter, or even cure the common cold. It was a somewhat comforting thought to remember that she had destroyed most of those machines. Maybe she could conquer revisiting high school.

As she opened the door, a thought occurred to her. It wasn't high school she was afraid of. It was unresolved issues that began in high school. It was her first love. It was Ron. She decided she didn't want Ron to be here after all. Too painful. She took her fiancé s' hand and squeezed it tightly as they stepped through the door, and into Kim's past.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Middleton High School was smaller than she remembered. But it smelled the same, and nothing brings back a memory so vividly as a familiar smell. She felt her knees go weak under the strain of all those memories. They hung upon her like a wet blanket, or a hundred wet towels, each one dripping with the same name.

Ron.

She was trying to remember exactly when it began. In some ways it began in preschool where they met; the foundation of a love deeper than she thought was possible. The pun wasn't lost on her, and she giggled, relieved at the temporary levity. Fortunately, the music, growing louder as they approached the doors to the gym, drowned out her giggle and her fiancé didn't hear it.

* * *

For an instant, her thoughts turned to her fiancé. His name was Raymond Beam. Kim called him Raymond but all their friends, and even his parents, called him Ray. He was tall, with rugged good looks. Two years ago he came to her lab to apply for a job and was turned down. The next day he showed up and asked her out. Again, he was turned down. A week later he came back asking for both a job and a date. That day, Dr. James Possible had been visiting his daughter in her lab and Ray introduced himself. Kim's father was impressed with the young man and hired Ray on the spot for a position in his cybertronics lab. Ray smiled broadly at his good fortune and turned to her. 

"At least I won half the battle", he said with a grin.

Kim giggled and blushed slightly. Well, if her dad had seen something promising in him, shouldn't she at least give him a chance? With Ron's voice echoing somewhere in the furthest corners of her mind, she accepted Ray's offer for a date. The first one since she and Ron had parted ways

The relationship progressed as relationships often do. Ray was a good listener, attentive, understanding. She wanted to be honest with him. She told him all about her relationship with Ron; the friendship, the romance, the painful ending. She even confided in him that there were probably some unresolved issues regarding Ron, even though she hadn't seen him in four years. Raymond understood. He was patient, tender, a good kisser… Their relationship deepened. Ray got along famously with Kim's family, even with her brothers.

Jim and Tim had mellowed as they got into high school. Since Kim moved out of the house, they realized how much she meant to them, and their antagonizing behavior faded away. They now had their own superhero operation, complete with website and modified battlesuits, all of which they designed and constructed themselves. No need to bother Wade anymore. They called themselves Twin Possible, and their website informed visitors that "Everything is possible, sometimes it's Twin Possible." They battled some of Kim's old nemeses, and in their time, a few new supervillains had arisen.

Kim had, of course, retired from hero work. She tried going solo for awhile after parting ways with Ron, but it was just too painful. She simply felt incomplete.She needed to take a new direction in her life, so in college she concentrated on getting her masters in medicine, with a second degree in cyber-engineering. Kim Possible, the product of a Rocket Scientist and a Brain Surgeon, was the world's foremost authority in the research of replacing damaged brain tissue with compatible cyber-technology. Already some of her designs were being used in the field of medicine in rehabilitating patients with mild brain damage. Naturally, Kim was not satisfied with this. Currently she was working on a completely functioning artificial human brain, capable of controlling everything from heart and lung functions to the ability to philosophize and rationalize. It was her goal that one day, severely brain damaged people could be given what was, in essence, a new brain, capable of everything a healthy, living, natural brain was capable of. Ten years ago the very concept would have sounded like farfetched science fiction, but today, she was on the cusp of a real breakthrough. The current working models were the size of a telephone booth. All she needed to figure out was a way to make them small enough to fit inside the human skull. Last year, she was given the Nobel prize in the field of medical research after she successfully copied the functions, thoughts and personality of a lab rat onto a functioning artificial brain. Since the process was, in essence, a cut and paste type of operation, the rat remained unharmed. This was a beneficial side-effect of her research. If anything went wrong in the transfer process, the original living brain remained unharmed and was still able to function. Kim was eager to begin tests on human subjects.

Her work was not without its detractors, however. Many ethicists felt there was too much potential for evil in Kim's work. One noted philosopher was convinced that eventually people would see her work as a road to immortality, and those with normal and healthy functioning brains would try to extend their lives with an artificial one. Kim knew, however, that her intentions were to help save and restore lives, not unnaturally extend them. She stayed out of the public eye as much as she could.

And as much as he could, Raymond tried to shield her from prying reporters, or people who were against her work. Early on, there had been a few break-ins at the lab, but Kim had made sure the lab was guarded with the most state-of-the-art security systems. Once, a supervillain by the name of Goliath Kilgore smashed through one of the walls, took Kim hostage, and hung her over a vat of boiling acid, threatening her demise if she didn't give him artificial brain technology. She refused, of course, and was working on an escape plan when the twins showed up. A brief battle thwarted Goliath and he was carted off to a maximum security prison. Kim took a month off from research while the lab wall was replaced and new security measures designed and installed by the twins were put in place. In that month, she and Raymond grew close, and he asked her to marry him. Kim told him she would have to think about it. She tried to get in touch with Ron somehow, but his parents couldn't say where he was. Only that he showed up every few months to celebrate the various Jewish Holy days with them and then would vanish again. Wade had changed his phone number and couldn't be reached. She hadn't talked to him in a few years either. Unable to get in touch with Ron, and thus unable to get some kind of closure on their relationship, Kim hesitantly said 'yes' to Raymond's proposal. They decided to set a wedding date a year from that day. The proposal had been, of course, last year which meant the wedding would be a week after the reunion. In six days, Kim Possible would become Kimberly Anne Beam, though she would still keep 'Possible' as her professional name.

* * *

Kim was trying to sort through all of these memories when Raymond opened the doors of the school gym, and the music's volume increased tenfold. Still holding his hand, they stepped through the doors, and into the darkened gym. Monique was instantly upon them, hugging Kim and shaking Raymond's hand. Kim was introduced to Monique's latest boyfriend, Chile Garcia, a minor-league baseball player; the star pitcher for the Upperton Wildcats with hot prospects for playing in the major leagues. 

Monique guided them all to a table she had been saving and they sat down. Ray and Monique were talking, so Kim felt she should break the ice with Chile.

"So, how do you like life on the pitcher's mound?" Kim asked him good-naturedly.

"It's terrific. I only have to work a few hours a week, and I get all the hot dogs I can eat." He joked.

"Lucky you", she replied "Are hot dogs your favorite?"

"Alas, no", he said with mock wistfulness, "My favorite food is no longer available. Well, Monique makes them for me sometimes, but they're just not the same."

"Makes what", Kim asked in a tremulous voice. She already knew the answer.

"It's called a 'Naco', it's a blend of a taco and nachos. I know it sounds weird, but they used to be available at Bueno Nacho before they closed down…"

Chile continued talking, but Kim could no longer hear him. Her head swam in a daze. It wasn't just the mention of Ron's favorite food. The DJ was playing a familiar song; a ballad began to drift through the gym. It was called "Could it be", and it was their song, hers and Ron's.

As if from a far away distance, Kim heard Raymond ask if she wanted to dance.

To this song? Was he insane?

"No, not right now. Maybe next one." She said absently. Very absently. Her body may have been at the reunion, but her mind was far, far away. Not in another place, but in another time. The Prom. Ten years ago in this very gym. That's where it had really begun.

* * *

The night was cool. Kim was warm. Ron had given her his coat to wear. They had left the Prom an hour ago and decided to go for a walk, though not to anywhere in particular. They didn't say much, and what they did say to each other was spoken in soft tones, as though a voice at normal volume might somehow break the spell. Kim certainly felt as if she were under one. 

She had been infatuated with Eric, and embarrassed beyond belief when it turned out he was a Syntho-drone. But in that moment, when Ron confessed his feelings for her, the way only Ron could, she had come to a realization. Drakken had beaten her with something that didn't exist; the perfect boy. In hindsight she wondered how she could have been so blind. Eric actually insisted on an earlier curfew?

Robot boyfriend alert!

In hindsight, the red flags where Eric was concerned were all over the place; He thought her world-saving hobby was cool. He got along with Ron, initially, and with her father and mother. She and Eric never argued. Eric was always so agreeable and supportive, and… fake.

Tied to a giant synthetic cactus – and it was with a little amusement she realized she had actually been in weirder situations – she concluded that real love was human, not perfect. Real love meant that your boyfriend should be your best friend. Who better to have an emotionally intimate relationship with than someone who knew and understood her more than anyone else alive? Yes, the relationship with Eric had all the excitement of getting to know someone new. But this was different. It was almost as if she were getting to know Ron all over again, while at the same time, she knew and understood him in ways no one else could.

She squeezed his hand and laid her head on his shoulder. He was humming softly to himself. Rufus was asleep in his pocket.

"What is that?" She asked him dreamily.

"What's what?" he replied softly.

"That song you're humming."

"Oh…it's the song that was playing when we kissed. I want to make sure I don't forget it. It's a good song, it fits us. I bet you could sing it just as good." He smiled at her shyly.

She leaned up and kissed his cheek, "It does fit us. We should make that our song."

"Yeah? You think? Wow…" Ron's voice trailed off.

"What?"

"I dunno. Having a song kinda feels, I don't know, permanent."

Kim stopped abruptly. Ron tripped and almost fell over.

"You don't want something that feels permanent?" she asked with a slight edge in her voice.

Ron straightened up and looked deep into her eyes. "You know I do, KP. I thought maybe – you know – you might not."

She took his face in her hands and pulled him to her. The kiss seemed to last forever, and at the same time ended too soon.

"I don't do this with anyone I'm dating casually," she said breathlessly pulling her face away from his, "You mean more to me than you know. Maybe even more than I realize."

"Wow… I don't know what to say", he said almost in a whisper.

"One of the nice things about us is that sometimes we don't have to say anything at all," she said laying her head on his shoulder again.

"We have a song." Ron said in wonder and began humming it again softly.

Kim smiled to herself.

Three minutes before Kim's curfew was to take effect, her parents were surprised to find Ron standing at the door instead of Eric. Kim was wearing Ron's jacket. And what exactly was that huge smile on her face all about?

"I'll explain it all later", Kim said to her parents, "Let me say goodnight to Ron first."

They stepped outside and closed the door, which raised eyebrows in the Possible household even further. Kim came back in a moment later, alone.

"Does Ron need a ride home?", her father asked.

"No. He said he'll just walk", Kim murmured in a dreamy voice, "Good night, everyone."

"We saw the news about Drakken." Her mother called up the stairs after her, "Did you at least have fun at the Prom?"

"I had the night of my life, Mom. Goodnight!"

Kim slipped into her pajamas and opened her window to gaze out at what had been the perfect night. Brushing her hair, she lost herself in the memory of that first kiss at the Prom, and the ones that followed. The night was perfectly still, and all was quiet. From somewhere far off, either down the street or the next block, a triumphant, joyous victory cry echoed back to her; faint but audible.

"Booooyaah!"

A dog barked, and then all was quiet again. Kim went to bed happier than she could ever remember, and dreamed.

* * *

"Ron is here." 

Kim was jolted out of her daydreaming by Monique's voice. Chile had given up talking to her and was getting them all some drinks. Raymond was sitting next to her with a sullen look on his face. He had pulled out his cell phone. Kim shook the cobwebs of distant memories from her mind.

"What?"

"Ron is here," Monique said again. "Tera said she just saw him in the parking lot. He's probably at the school doors by now."

"Honey," Raymond interrupted, "I need to make a phone call."

"Yeah, sure, whatever," Kim responded in a daze. Ron had come after all. What was she going to do? On the other hand, this might be an opportunity to hash things out with Ron and get some clos-

BOOM!

The high school was rocked by a thunderous explosion. The music stopped instantly and everyone was thrown off their feet. Kim dove to the ground as yet another explosion erupted nearby. The gym remained intact, but Kim knew the blasts were close. A few people screamed in terror. Kim got up and sprinted for the gym doors. She threw them open and found a war zone outside. Little remained of the hallway, and the front doors of the school were gone, replaced by a two story gaping hole in the school's facade. Wisps of smoke drifted from various piles of fresh rubble. No one seemed to be hurt. Although, Kim thought grimly to herself, if anyone had been here, they would have been vaporized-

Ron.

NO!

Kim stood staring in disbelief at the wreckage. If Ron had been here, then he was… she couldn't even finish the thought. Tears began to well up in her eyes. Her world swam, as though reality were turning to liquid. Looking wildly about, she spotted a shadowy figure perched on the roof above where the front doors had been. Whoever it was, he or she was dressed in ninja style garb; a jet black outfit with thin crimson stripes in certain places such as the hands and the feet. One thin stripe up each arm, and down each leg. On the chest was the crimson likeness of a samurai sword; a katana. Strapped to the ninja's back was a real katana. The face was covered save for the eyes which were looking directly at her. Whoever it was, he or she would know something about what just happened. The shadowy figure disappeared.

Kim went after it.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

She found herself reaching for the hair dryer/grappling hook that hadn't been there for six years. At least the instincts were still there. She raced toward the remains of the front doors. A piece of rebar protruded from the ceiling of the first floor. She grabbed it and swung herself up. Kicking her legs up, she let go of the rebar and somersaulted once, landing on the second floor ledge.

The ninja stood at the edge of the hole in the roof above her, but he was not looking at Kim. His face was turned skyward. Kim saw her opportunity and ran straight at the wall, then appeared to almost run straight up it. At the peak of her upward momentum, she pushed herself off the wall and arched her back, twisting in the air. Her hand was just at the point of grasping the ninja's right leg when the ninja did a backward hand flip, over and over until he was on the other side of the roof.

Meanwhile, Kim was caught by surprise. She was sure he couldn't see her coming, but quickly set that particular problem aside since she was in mid-air and in danger of plummeting all the way down to the first floor. Her right hand grasped the edge of the hole but that part of the roof instantly crumbled away. Kim threw her head back, did a backward somersault and landed on the second floor again.

She stood up straight and noted that her muscles were already beginning to ache. She wasn't as young as she used to be, or as fast. She took another run straight up the wall, pushed herself off and this time caught the edge with both hands, vaulting herself up on to the roof.

The ninja was perched on the furthest corner of the roof, again looking to the sky. She followed his gaze and noticed some kind of small aircraft approaching the school, but was still a mile or so off. It would be a few minutes before it arrived. Fearing this was the ninja's escape vehicle, Kim sprinted across the roof straight at him. He didn't even turn to look at her, but continued gazing at the approaching aircraft.

"You're not getting away that easy", Kim growled. With a leap, she launched herself at the ninja, intending to tackle him.

Never looking at her, the ninja leaped away just before she would have gotten him. To her horror, Kim realized she had run out of roof and, without her grappler, would fall to the parking lot below. It all seemed to play out in slow motion. She was too far above the roof to grab on to anything, and would fall too far forward of the edge to catch herself.

A flash of movement in the corner of her eye. Almost by instinct, she caught the end of a small stick with her right hand, then grasped it with her left as well and hung on for dear life. The stick was attached to a small chain, which was attached to another stick which the ninja was holding in his right hand. Nun chucks.

The dark-clad warrior grasped the roof edge with his left hand and swung himself over. Kim realized this was so she would have enough time to twist in the air and "land" with her feet on the wall. She did so, and then looked up into the eyes of the person who had just saved her life.

"I am not your enemy", he said in a low, rough voice.

_

* * *

_

"Let us not be enemies", the e-mail pleaded, "I simply wish to know you better."

It was the afternoon after the Prom, and Kim had gotten yet another e-mail from Senor Senior Jr. expressing his supposed undying love and devotion to her. Kim rolled her eyes and was about to delete the e-mail as she always did when a thought struck her. This time she had an answer for him. Perhaps if he knew what was up, he might stop pestering her. She hit the "reply" button and typed out a note.

_Junior,_

_While I am flattered at all this attention you say you wish to shower upon me, I feel I must inform you that I am currently involved with someone. He is a kind, warm, loving man with whom I expect to spend the rest of my life._

Whoa.

She had typed that last sentence without realizing what she was saying. She was also startled to discover that she meant it. Kim sat back in her chair in a bit of a daze. _The rest of my life._ Yep, that's what she had written. It wasn't an unpleasant thought. On the contrary, it almost seemed like stating an obvious fact.

"The sky is blue," she said to herself softly, "Water is wet, ice is cold, I am going to spend my life with Ron." It all certainly seemed to be true enough. So, what exactly did this mean?

Three minutes later, she was downstairs at the kitchen table with a soda in her hands. Her mother sat across from her sipping her own soda. The unfinished e-mail remained on the screen of her computer upstairs. Kim was just finishing her description of the note, and what she had just said to herself.

Her mother sat in silence and smiled at her.

"What?", Kim asked.

"What what?" her mother asked her back.

"Can't you tell me what this means?" Kim pleaded.

"Doesn't it sound self-explanatory to you?" her mother queried.

"So I'm going to spend the rest of my life with Ron?"

"Is that a bad thing?"

"Are you going to answer all my questions with questions?" Kim demanded.

"Why? Is this bugging you?" her mother asked pointedly.

"Arrrrgh! YES!" Kim practically shouted in frustration.

Silence.

"You're mad because I shouted." Kim said dejectedly. She was beginning to feel as though her mother wasn't going to help her out at all, "I'm sorry."

"I'm not mad," her mother said, "I understand how someone can become frustrated when bombarded with a bunch of questions, especially when there don't seem to be any answers."

Kim looked at her mother, who was returning her gaze with a smile and a raised eyebrow. Dr. Possible sipped her soda.

Kim's face fell. Somehow she thought her mother was going to tell her everything would be wonderful and her world would be all rainbows and Ron, happily ever after. Mom seemed to know something but wasn't telling her. Did Mom know that Kim and Ron would stay together always? Kim supposed her mother, brain surgeon that she was, could do a lot of things, but she could not see into the future.

Wait a minute.

Mom's smile brightened. She could tell her daughter was coming to a realization.

"So," Kim said slowly, "Maybe it's possible to ask too many questions."

"It is if you expect answers to all of them", Mom replied.

"You're saying I should just relax," Kim stated, "And enjoy the here and now."

"In this case, yes. Whether or not you know you will spend your life with Ron doesn't change today. Today you and Ron have each other, and you both like it that way. Why spoil it by asking a lot of questions that only time can answer? Let tomorrow take care of itself. If you two are meant to be together, then that's wonderful. Ron is already practically part of the family, and I would love to have his parents as in-laws."

Kim felt flush at this. Though she had been talking in permanent terms, the word '_marriage_' never quite popped into her head until now. Visions of Christmas celebrations, Hanukkah feasts, summer family reunions and all manner of domestic loveliness danced in her head. She was a little surprised by this.

Mom sensed what she was thinking, "Just make sure you guys take things nice and slow. You've known each other this long, doesn't it make sense that you'll know each other a lot longer? If you're meant to be together, then you will be."

"I think we will be", Kim said happily. She got up and kissed her mother on the cheek. "Thanks, Mom, you rock."

"I have my moments", her mother agreed.

Kim raced back upstairs, finished the e-mail, and sent it out.

Ron showed up promptly at 6:30. This evening was to be their official first date. Kim had been trying to call him all day, but Ron's father said he was out, and he wasn't sure when he'd be home, but to tell Kim that tonight's dress code was "casual". Kim figured they'd probably go to Bueno Nacho and then catch a movie. It was weird. They'd actually done Bueno Nacho and a movie a hundred times, but tonight felt different. Somehow it was all new and exciting. She could care less what they did, she just wanted to be with him. And even though Ron's dad insisted it was casual, she dressed up anyway.

At the sound of the doorbell, she ran a brush quickly through her hair, grabbed her coat and ran downstairs. Ron stood just inside the doorway. The twins had answered the doorbell and were talking to Ron. Kim was horrified, already the twins were trying to ruin their first date. She felt her anger rising.

"Tweebs!", she hollered leaping down the stairs three at a time, "Step away from my boyfriend, now!"

Ron was handing something to Jim. He looked up at her and smiled broadly. To Kim's utter astonishment, Jim took what was handed to him and the twins quietly, almost respectfully, left the foyer and went into the living room. They didn't look back, they didn't make any annoying remarks, they didn't make any goofy faces. Kim was almost sure they'd tease her about the 'boyfriend' remark.

"Hey", said Ron pleasantly, "How's it goin'?"

He had decided to dress up as well. This time he was wearing a proper black tux he'd rented that afternoon. He looked different, much more grown up.

"I was going to say 'same as usual', but there's nothing usual about the way the Tweebs just walked away like that," Kim replied, suspiciously eyeing the door to the living room.

"Well, I guess it's an unusual night," Ron observed thoughtfully, "Though I'm hoping it will become a common event. You know, us going out, I mean."

"Me, too," she smiled warmly at him and kissed his cheek.

At that moment, Mr. And Mrs. Possible came in from the kitchen. Both had smiles on their faces. Kim felt almost too happy to speak. Suddenly, it just seemed like everything was right with the world.

"Hi, Ron!" Kim's father greeted him cheerfully, "Everything's all set!"

"Terrific, Doctor P, thanks!", Ron replied.

Kim looked at her father. He had a look on his face like he was hiding something from her, and enjoying it. She turned to Ron and pulled a couple of pieces of paper from her pocket.

"I got coupons for Bueno Nacho! Nacos are on me!" she informed him.

"Coupons! Excellent! These will come in handy sometime," he said excitedly with a huge grin. Then suddenly his face turned very serious, and his voice took on an overly serious tone, "But not tonight. Tonight, we are embarking on our first date! And for my lady, tonight Bueno Nacho will not suffice…although in the future I'm hoping it will suffice quite often as I am very fond of the cuisine there. Tonight, however, we are dining at Chez Ron!"

And with that, he whisked her out the door.

Kim barely had time to say goodbye to her parents. They stood at the doorway and waved. Even the twins came out and wished them a fun night. Kim was speechless. Her Dad never said anything about a curfew, but then he seemed to know something she didn't. She gave them all a wave, and then turned to smile at Ron. He, too was waving at her parents, and then he looked at Kim and smiled.

"I'll get the door", he said and walked ahead a few steps.

For the first time, Kim noticed the black stretch SUV style limousine parked at the end of their driveway. Ron was already there, holding a door open for her.

"Wow, Ron, you really didn't have to do this", she said in an awed voice, "I figured we'd just go to Bueno Nacho and a movie. You know I don't expect you to do this."

"Exactly why I _did_ do it," Ron declared, "You don't expect to be spoiled by your dates. And in all the time I've known you, I've never seen anyone pick you up in a limo. I wanted to be the first."

Kim tried to say something but found she couldn't. He wasn't trying to impress her. She knew him too well. Ron might have put up a false front for others, trying to act manly, or smooth, or even sophisticated. But she realized she was the one person, except for maybe his parents, that Ron was real with. So she knew that when Ron hired a limo for their date, it wasn't about trying to be something he wasn't, it was about expressing to her what she meant to him.

"Ron, how-" she began but he cut her off.

"Remember that huge Naco royalties check? Well, when my Dad found out what I had done with it, he wrote the Bueno Nacho corporation and told them to send any additional checks to him for safekeeping. Any that came he put into a trust fund for me. I can't touch most of it until I'm 21, but I do get an allowance from it. For tonight, my dad gave me an advance."

She climbed in and he got in after her. They settled on the plush seat all the way at the back. The car was as big as a bus. Kim figured they'd have to yell up to the driver to tell him wherever Chez Ron was. Ron picked up the phone next to him.

"Salad course", he said and hung up. The limo pulled away from the driveway and moved off down the street.

"I hope you're hungry", he said.

"Famished," She answered, " I've been saving my appetite for tonight. So where exactly where is Chez Ron?"

"Chez Ron is everywhere, baby. You'll see", he said putting his arm around her.

Kim settled up against him and laid her head on his shoulder with a sigh of contentment. She marveled at this new side of Ron. She also marveled at how she could know someone her whole life only to have him surprise her from time to time. She liked this. During missions, she had to take the lead, but tonight, she was satisfied to let him handle things.

The sun was low and the air cool when they pulled up to their destination a few minutes later. Ron got out first, and then assisted Kim. She could parachute from great heights, scale sheer rock walls, jump from one high rooftop to the next. But getting in and out of an SUV in heels proved tricky. Her heel caught on the doorsill, and while she could have easily corrected her step, she allowed herself to fall into his arms. He caught her with some difficulty, kissed her forehead and gestured behind him. It was…a playground?

Kim was wondering if maybe she should have dressed casual after all when she noticed the small folding chairs and table. On it were two place settings, and two candles already lit. Ron helped her into her seat and sat down on the other side. On the table was a bowl of salad, covered in plastic wrap. He uncovered it and served her, and then himself.

Kim still didn't understand, "So, Chez Ron is a playground?"

"Not just any playground, KP, _our_ playground!" He said gesturing about.

She looked around, confused, and then it dawned on her. This was the preschool where they met. The thought made her melt inside, realizing the trouble he had gone to not just make this a great night, but a meaningful one.

"Alright, before we get into any heavy conversation, I must inform you of two rules regarding this portion of our meal." Ron said with mock importance.

"Fire away", Kim said gamely.

"Rule Numero Uno: Don't eat too much salad because there three other courses coming. And Rule Numero Two-o: the subject of conversation during the salad course can only be about our preschool days."

Kim blinked, Ron really _had_ put a lot of thought into this.

As much as she wanted to ask him how he managed to get her brothers to act so civil, and maybe a hundred other questions, she played by the rules. Soon they found themselves laughing and giggling at all the memories from back when they first met.

The conversation was far from over when Ron announced it was time for the second course of the meal.

"Great", Kim said, "What are we having?"

"Let's go find out," He said standing and taking her by the hand. He led her to the limo, helped her in, and they were off.

Half an hour later, they pulled into the driveway of a mansion in Upperton. The massive house was dark and empty, as Mr. Paisley had moved on to bigger and better places. But Ron had apparently gotten Paisley's permission to use it. Once again, a table and chairs, with two lit candles, were waiting for them inside.

"Let me guess", Kim said, smiling at him "Conversation is limited to our first mission."

"Well," Ron said, thinking, "It doesn't have to be just that."

Their voices echoed through the empty house.

"Man, this place is kinda creepy", Ron observed nervously, "It wasn't this dark here this morning."

"I like it" she said to him softly, "A house of our own… you know, for a little while."

Both of them blushed but were surprised to find they weren't embarrassed about it. Ron went into the kitchen where the soup was being kept warm and came back with two bowls.

The conversation this time focused on how they were getting to know each other in Junior High School, and how each of her missions seemed to get more and more difficult as the years went by. All the while she was talking, Kim basked in his thoughtfulness. She couldn't possibly imagine how a date could get more romantic than this one, and told him so.

"Oh terrific," he said with exaggerated alarm, "That means it's all down hill from here!"

"Maybe", she said laughing, "But sometimes relationships can be like a roller coaster. The down hill is the best part."

He noticed most of her soup was finished. He stood up, took a small remote control device out of his pocket and pressed a button. From somewhere in a dark corner, the song "Could It Be" began to play. He took her hand, led her out to the middle of the empty room, and they danced in the candlelight. Kim began to wonder if she was dreaming.

Twenty minutes later, the limo pulled up to her father's lab. After the security gate opened, they drove around to the airstrip behind where an experimental aircraft was waiting. Kim finally discovered what her father seemed to be hiding from her earlier.

Dr. Possible had arranged, at Ron's request, for a the aircraft and a pilot to take them wherever Ron wished to go. In two hours, Ron and Kim were standing on a deserted mountain-top on an uncharted island in the Caribbean. Drakken's first lair.

Again, a table, chairs, and two lit candles.

"I thought since you put Drakken away last night-" Ron began.

"_We_ put him away, Ron," Kim corrected him.

"Anyway," he continued, "I thought the main course should be where we first met him. Ya gotta admit. In his own twisted way, Drakken did bring us closer together."

Ron had brought the main course with them on the aircraft. As he went to retrieve it, Kim looked around, almost wistfully. Strewn about the place were the remains of death rays, brain tap machines, large aquariums that had once held giant sharks. How many times had they been here? How many battles had she fought with Shego? Now that Drakken was put away for likely a very long time, was she actually beginning to _miss_ him? Perhaps, she concluded, she missed him in a way that only a superhero can miss an arch foe. They had an almost symbiotic relationship; Kim/Ron, girl/boy, hero/sidekick, while on the opposite side were Drakken/Shego, boy/girl, villain/sidekick. Each the seemingbizarroversion of the other.

Ron came back with the main course and they ate in almost complete silence.

"It's weird, isn't it?" Ron said, his voice echoing through the vast lair, "With Drakken and Shego gone, it's almost like some bizarre chapter in our lives is ending."

Kim squinted her eyes and studied the young man sitting opposite her. Could he actually read her mind now? Where did that come from?

"Who are you?" she asked teasingly.

_

* * *

_

"Who are you?" she demanded.

For a split second the crimson stripes on the ninja's suit glowed, and then he pulled her up on to the roof.

"I-" he began, but suddenly lunged at her, grabbed her by the waist and threw her aside. Kim landed tumbling and quickly recovered her feet.

The air suddenly seemed to be electrified as a whirring/zapping sound preceded an explosion where Kim and the ninja had been standing a second earlier. A massive laser beam tore a hole in the school roof. Kim was thrown off her feet once more, while the ninja, crimson stripes glowing again, somersaulted clear of the destruction.

What Kim had seen as a small aircraft was actually a huge robot of some kind; a mechanized being that stood about twelve feet tall and bristled with all manner of laser type weapons. It flew over them with a roar, dropped to the field behind the school for an instant, then launched itself up to the roof, landing with a massive thud. It turned and faced the ninja.

"I am Lord Deathray", it said in a slight English accent, "I have come to annihilate Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable."

The ninja leaped to the far corner of the roof, drawing the robot's attention away from Kim. Muffled cries could be heard from below, while there were approaching sirens in the distance.

"The one you know as Stoppable is no more", the ninja said, turning to face the gigantic machine, "You destroyed him as he was attempting to enter the building. I regret I was not in time to stop you. But I will not allow you to harm anyone else. If you wish to fight, climb out of that machine and face me."

From a remote, detached part of her sub-conscience, Kim observed that this was not a robot, but rather someone in a massive mechanized battle suit. This particular fact went unnoticed, drowned out by a screaming, horrific confirmation of her worst fears:

Ron Stoppable was dead.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Kim struggled to her feet as though gravity had increased by a factor of ten.

Ron…dead. Her brain had a difficult time wrapping itself around the concept. She stumbled, almost fainting, but regained her feet. Whoever this ninja was, he was attempting to handle the behemoth machine – what had he called himself? Lord Deathray? – alone, and he clearly needed help. She had battled giant robots before. She hoped it would all come back to her.

"Do not taunt me. I know who you are, samurai. I will not climb out of my suit unless you climb out of yours," Deathray was answering the ninja's challenge, "But as to combat-"

The machine quickly raised an arm, powering up the laser cannon but the dark warrior sprang through the air, pulling the katana from his back. No, it wasn't a katana as Kim thought, but a battleaxe. The ninja swung the axe and buried it in the cannon, swinging himself up and wresting the sword free as he did. Sparks flew from the gash in the machine; a blazing shower of bright white that caused Kim to squint. The ninja somersaulted over the top of Deathray and landed behind him, brandishing a katana.

Kim blinked. What happened to the axe? Time for questions was later, she reminded herself. As Deathray turned his back to her to search for the ninja, she took three running steps, pushed off with her feet, and landed on the machine's back. Once again, she forgot she had no weapons of any kind. She looked wildly about for some kind of hatch, or door, or something she could disrupt. But Deathray's left arm came up fast and blasted her with a repulsor beam. She was thrown clear and just barely managed to land on her feet uninjured. Kim counted herself fortunate that Deathray hadn't used a more powerful and lethal weapon on her. She was about to make another run at him when she heard something that sounded very familiar; two simultaneous gun blasts followed by a whirring sound. Looking up she saw two grappling hooks fly up from the parking lot below and latch on to the shoulders of the machine. Before Deathray could do anything, the cables went taught and pulled him over forward, so that he came crashing down on his front side.

Kim heard a whizzing sound and two figures scaled up the wall, leaping onto the roof while holding on to the end of the retracting grappling cables. It was Twin Possible.

"Jim! Tim!" she cried out to them.

They turned to look at her, exchanged two or three words, and Jim came running over to see to her.

"Are you all right?", Jim asked, concerned.

She nodded quickly pointing a finger at the machine, her voice shaking, "That thing just killed Ron!"

"What?" Jim asked, disbelieving, "Are you sure?"

"I'll explain later!"

"Stay here" Jim insisted, "We'll take care of it."

"Be careful," she warned him, "There's a ninja somewhere up here."

Jim yelled something over his shoulder to her but she couldn't quite tell what it was. It sounded like "row nin", but that didn't make much sense.

Kim wisely retreated to a corner of the roof to let her brothers handle the battle. The cannon on his right arm disabled, Deathray was using the repulsor beam on his left to keep his three opponents at bay.

The four of them squared off; Deathray on one side of the roof, while the ninja, flanked by the twins, faced him from the other side. Kim bit her lip in worry. This was the first time she'd ever had to watch from the sidelines, and she was unaccustomed to it.

Deathray had his weapon trained on the ninja, but did not fire. Kim speculated that if Deathray did fire, the twins would be upon him. And if he switched targets, the remaining two would just as quickly attack him. Kim was looking directly at the ninja when the katana in his hand suddenly became a bow staff. The ninja spun the staff menacingly several times, the stripes on his suit glowed, and then he charged at Lord Deathray.

The cannon fired, just barely missing the dark warrior. The twins fired their grappling hooks, latching them, one on each of Deathray's shoulders. They then took off at a run, crossing each other's paths in front of Deathray as the ninja used his bow staff to pole vault himself up onto the machine's chest. Jim and Tim circled around behind and hurled themselves from the roof, still holding their grappling guns. The cables went taught, toppling Deathray over backward. Meanwhile, the ninja raised his fist, the stripes of his suit glowing brightly, and slammed it down upon the machine. Sparks flew, while electric bolts danced about the surface of Deathray and down the cables to the twins below. The ninja leaped clear.

The roof gave way beneath the weight of the falling machine and Deathray crashed through the ceiling to the floor below. The twins were pulled back up to the roof and let go of their grappling guns before theycould bepulled in after Deathray.

Kim gasped as bolts of electricity seared and sizzled up and down the twins' battle-suits.

"It's all right!" Tim called to her, "The suits are designed to absorb energy!"

The twins stepped to the edge of the hole, pointed their arms downward at Deathray, and with a slight twist of the wrists, released the stored energy, hurling it at the machine. The massive bolts drove Deathray through the floor to the ground floor below. The machine came to a rest and did not move.

The twins trotted over to check on their sister. There was a brief moment of relative silence. The sirens were close. Barely two minutes had passed since Kim had gotten to the roof.

"Hey, Kim." Jim said grimly.

_

* * *

_

"Hey, Kim!" Jim said cheerfully. Kim stood holding Ron's hand and staring in mild disbelief. Jim had been the first to greet her, then everyone else greeted her with a chorus of hellos.

Twenty minutes earlier, she was having dinner with her boyfriend in a deserted mountain top lair in the middle of the Caribbean. They talked in hushed tones about anything and everything. She had teased him about not knowing who he was.

"Sometimes I don't even know myself", Ron answered honestly, "It's like things are different between us now. In a good way," he added hurriedly.

"I think we're both different somehow", Kim agreed.

Ron looked worried, "Suppose something were to happen to-?"

"Don't," Kim chided softly, guessing what he was thinking, "There's no point in asking a lot of questions neither of us can answer. We have each other now, let's enjoy this as long as it goes, whether it's two years or twenty."

"Or even more?" Ron asked with a smile.

"Or even more", Kim agreed, "The point is, not to worry so much about us that it affects our relationship in a negative way. Cool?"

Ron looked at her slyly, "So not the drama."

"Cute", she said smiling, "So when and where is dessert?"

Ron smacked his forehead, "Dessert! That's right!"

He stood up, took a small communicator from his pocket, and pressed a button.

"Ron to dessert, Ron to dessert, come in dessert." He said, trying to sound official.

"This is dessert. Ice cream is currently inbound. ETA six minutes." Came a crackly voice on the other end.

"Roger booyah and out!" Ron replied and put the communicator back in his pocket.

He stepped over to Kim and took her by the hand. Kim stood up. Without saying a word, she put her arms around his neck, and kissed him deeply. Every bit of affection, every ounce of feeling, every spark of magic about this night, she expressed to him in that kiss. He put his arms around her waist, embracing her tightly and the passion of the kiss intensified. His left hand slid down to the small of her back, her fingers slid up the back of his neck. He plunged his right hand deep into her hair and held the back of her head, firmly, but tenderly.

They parted softly, slowly, breathlessly.

"Wow", she said gently, her eyes half closed, "You're an amazing kisser."

"I'm only as good as my partner" he said, smiling dazedly at her, "Until recently, I've been practicing on a piece of steak in the fridge at home. Every time my mom catches me she always puts a toothpick in it so she and my dad won't eat it by mistake-"

"OK, Ron", Kim protested, amused but a little repulsed, "That's way more info than I needed."

"Sorry," he said sheepishly, "But if it helps, you taste much better."

"Ron!"

"OK, OK, let's head out to the landing platform."

They stood holding hands behind the protective glass as the massive aircraft, similar to the one they had flown in but much larger, attempted to land on the platform. The pilot surmised the landing area was too small and engaged the hover mode, extending a walkway from beneath the nose to the platform itself.

To her astonishment, her brother Jim emerged.

Ron waved and Jim turned, called something back into the aircraft, and trotted over to them.

"Hey Kim", he said smiling at her.

Kim looked back to the platform and saw just about everyone she knew disembarking. There was the cheer squad (except Bonnie, who had turned down Ron's invitation), her other brother Tim, Monique and Brick who, Kim noticed, were walking very close to each other. There was Zita Flores holding Felix Renton's left hand while he piloted his wheelchair with his right, followed by Josh Mankey, Big Mike, and the rest of her Senior Class. Last to depart the aircraft were Ron's parents, followed by the Drs. Possible, each of whom were carrying a huge carton of ice cream. Walking and talking with Mr. Dr. Possible was an official looking man dressed in a conservative three-piece suit. He was talking to Kim's father.

"This way, everyone!" Ron called out, "They party's in Drakken's crib tonight!"

Ron let go of Kim's hand and led everyone inside the lair.

Kim walked over to her father.

"So", Kim's father was saying to the stranger, "You've seen its capabilities, its speed, its fuel efficiency. I think you'll find the Orbital Carrier the perfect product for your new airline."

"I'm not completely convinced" the man replied, smiling, "I will have an answer when you return to Middleton."

"Fair enough," Dr. Possible replied. He took a small phone out of his pocket and punched several buttons, "Our guest is ready to return to the lab, I'd appreciate it if you'd pick him up at the landing platform."

A moment later, the smaller craft, the one Kim and Ron had arrived in, set down on the platform. The well-dressed stranger climbed in and the plane took off. Once everyone was off, the larger plane found a field elsewhere on the island to land.

"What was that all about?" Kim asked her father.

"Officially, it was a test of the capabilities of our new Orbital Carrier aircraft which means this trip can't be classified as a misuse of funds. Unofficially, it was a ride to the party." Dr. Possible replied with a wink.

"So you and Ron planned all this?" Kim asked.

"It was mostly Ron. He called early this morning and asked if it would be possible to bring everyone down here. I told him 'Anything's possible…"

"…for a Possible", Kim said finishing his sentence, "But why?"

"Why?" Her father looked at her as though she had asked a silly question, "Because tonight we celebrate! You've beaten your arch foe, saved the day and found True Love! Three very good reasons to have a party!"

_OK_, Kim thought to herself, _we have now officially achieved the best date in the history of everything ever._

Inside, Ron was chatting with just about everyone. People were busy clearing debris out of the way, or putting up decorations. The twins were excitedly examining all the ray guns, the shark pit, the brain tap device, you name it. Everyone was talking to everyone else. The Stoppables set up a small table with snacks and Ice Cream. Kim just stood there and soaked it all in. Could it get any better?

Apparently the answer was 'yes'.

Ronspoke into his communicator again, suddenly the huge monitor powered up and on it appeared Wade, bigger than life.

"Wade, my man!" Ron said, standing in front of the massive screen with his hands on his hips, "We need some serious grooves in here! Can you hook us up?"

"Already on it, Ron. Thanks for inviting me." Wade said with a grin on his face.

"Wouldn't be a party without ya, buddy!" Ron declared.

An instant later - from unseen speakers, the P.A. system, or anything that would emit sound - music poured forth. Wadestreamed MP3's of all the latest club grooves into the lair. He fiddled remotely with the controls of the monitor so that his image was reduced to a corner of the screen. The rest of the monitor he filled with his own homemade light show. The overhead lights dimmed, and everyone began to dance.

Zita sat in Felix's lap, put her head on his shoulder, her arms around his neck, and closed her eyes. Regardless of the tempo of the song, Felix just spun the wheelchair in slow, lazy circles most of the night. Brick and Monique danced only with each other. Wade grooved in his room back home. Ron brought out all his O-Boyz moves, and a few new ones. Mr. And Mrs. Stoppable sat with Dr. and Mrs. Dr. Possible at the now abandoned dinner table and chatted as best they could over the music. By remote, Wade re-activated Drakken's freeze ray to keep the Ice Cream cold. Rufus, who had been sleeping in Jim's pocket the entire evening, woke up, devoured his body weight in snacks, and went back to sleep. The twins had re-wired several of Drakken's ray guns so they would shoot harmless beams of light. They positioned mirrors everywhere they could and activated the machines. Different colored light beams began to bounce all about the lair. There wasn't a dance club on the face of the earth that could compare to this.

_Life sure is weird sometimes,_ Kim thought to herself, _I'm partying with all my friends in the lair of a super villain who just last night tried to conquer the world._

She, of course, danced with Ron only. The current song was a club mix of U2's 'City Of Blinding Lights', and Kim began to wonder if every song she heard lately weren't written specifically for her and Ron.

"_And I miss you when you're not around._ "

Bono's words seemed to fill her world as she watched Ron groove and gyrate.

"_And I'm getting ready to leave the ground."_

She felt lighter than air. Ron never took his eyes off her, and she could sense that he, like her, couldn't find a single reason to stop smiling.

"_Oh, you look so beautiful tonight."_

Ron seemed to glow with happiness. Well, maybe the beam of light that harmlessly shot through him contributed to the image, but Ron seemed as happy as she felt. She closed her eyes, spun into his arms and he caught her without any awkwardness or hesitation. Kim opened her eyes and saw him looking back at her. They found they were slow dancing, despite the rapid tempo of the music. Reality and fantasy seemed to swirl in a multicolored vortex of being and light. The rest of the world faded and retreated into the background. The only thing she saw clearly were Ron's eyes, looking deep into hers. She stood on her tiptoes, put her lips next to his ear and whispered:

"I love you, Ron."

Despite the volume of the music, he heard her. He stood stock still, his eyes wide, and began to speak.

"No", she said softly, putting a finger to his lips, "Don't say it back to me just because I said it you. I want to hear you say it when you can mean it; when you feel it as deeply as I do."

Ron leaned in close and spoke softly into her ear, "If I were to do that, I would need a time machine to travel back to last night."

She smiled and giggled happily. Suddenly conscious of everyone around her, she spun away from him and resumed dancing. Ron, a little dazed, slowly picked up where his groove left off.

In a dim corner, four parents were watching and smiling at each other.

Several hours later, the Orbital Carrier was hurtling at low orbit, adjusting its trajectory for approach to Middleton. Half the occupants were asleep, though earlier no one had really wanted to break up the party. Mr. Dr. Possible had promised all their parents they'd be home by morning, and he intended to keep his word. Those who were awake were talking in low voices. Kim sat talking quietly to Monique while Ron slept with his head on her shoulder. Brick was snoring in the row behind them.

It took a good couple of hours to drop everyone off at their homes, and when all was said and done, the eastern horizon was already beginning to turn gray. The sun would be up soon. The Stoppables told Ron he could walk home. Kim's family had gone inside and left them outside the front door to say goodnight.

"I can't thank you enough, Ron", she said softly at the end of their kiss. "This night has been absolutely amazing."

"Oh, I can think of several ways you can thank me," Ron said winking at her.

She playfully nudged him, and kissed him once more.

"Good night, Ron", she whispered.

"Good night", he said cheerfully and headed off down the walkway to the sidewalk, whistling.

"Kim?", he called quietly from halfway down the walk.

"Yes?" She had her hand on the doorknob but hadn't opened it yet. She turned to look at him.

"I love you, too."

_

* * *

_

"Are you two all right?" she asked in a shaky voice.

"We were just going to ask you that," Tim said, "Are you hurt at all?"

"Not physically", Kim said, tears beginning to brim.

"Are you sure Deathray killed Ron?" Jim asked her.

"That's what the ninja said." Kim pointed over their shoulder.

Behind them, the dark warrior crouched at the edge of the newly created hole, gazing down at Deathray. So far, the massive machine hadn't moved since falling to the ground floor.

"I'll go talk to him" Tim said walking cautiously over to the ninja.

"What did you call him earlier?" Kim asked her brother, "What's 'Row nin'?"

"That's what the media are calling him." Jim explained, "He's been doing hero work in Middleton for about a year now, but no one knows his real identity... if he has one. Anyway, some reporter described him as a wandering samurai mercenary hero because of the sword he carries, so that's the name they gave him; Ronin."

"You've worked with him before?" asked Kim.

"Not on purpose. Sometimes he shows up at one of our missions, or sometimes we arrive for a mission and find he's already undertaken it. He's saved my life a couple of times", Jim told her. "He's not territorial about anything, never demands any glory for himself. And though we've spoken with him only a few times, it's always been about missions. We have no idea who he is beyond the hero identity."

Tim and the ninja known as Ronin were exchanging quiet words with each other when the building began to shake. Deathray was stirring.

"Stay here", Jim said and ran off to join the other two who were taking up combat stances in anticipation of Deathray's returnto the roof.

But Deathray had other plans. He smashed through the wall of the ground floor and ignited his thrusters, streaking off into the night sky. Ronin sprinted to the edge of the roof and leaped off. In mid air, he took the katana from his back and swung it in a circle, hurling one end of it at Deathray. What looked like a katana had become a length of chain with a claw attached to one end. The claw latched firmly on to Deathray's left foot and pulled Ronin up into the sky. They disappeared into the distance.

The twins came back over to their big sister.

"He said he saw Ron reach the front door of the school when Deathray fired two blasts from high altitude," Tim said grimly, "Ron disappeared in the blast. He doesn't think anyone could have taken such a hit and survived."

Before Kim could react, a muffled cry came from below.

"Kim!" It was Monique.

With the assistance of her brothers, Kim was helped back down to the ground floor.

Kim found Monique standing in the debris of the school entrance, crying.

"I found this", she sobbed and handed something to Kim.

It was a driver's license. The edges were singed black and one quarter of it was missing. But the photograph was there, along with the name under it. It was Ron's. She stared at the picture as if seeing a stranger. So this was the man Ron had become?

The tears hit her in a deluge of emotion she could no longer hold back. She collapsed to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably. Reality had finally sunk in.

* * *

An hour later, Ronin stood unseen at the edge of the school rooftop. Deathray had landed some five miles off, never seeming to notice Ronin was attached. The machine came to a rest in an abandoned warehouse and powered down. Expecting personal combat, the ninja waited for some hatch or door to open and Deathray to emerge. But nothing happened. Ronin stepped up to the machine tentatively, prepared to spring away at the slightest movement. Nothing. He inspected the robotic suit closely and, finding a small latch on the back side, pulled it. A rear hatch opened. 

No one was inside.

"Empty!" the ninja growled, "The thing was remotely controlled."

"No way," said a transmitted voice in his ear, "It could be flown by remote, but there's no technology sophisticated enough that could remote control that thing in battle."

"OK," Ronin said sarcastically, "What, then? Did he teleport out while in flight?"

"No," said the voice, "But what if it was remotely fired and flown, and then Deathray climbed into it tofight you guys?"

The ninja stood still a moment, thinking.

"The school!" He exclaimed, "The suit landed in the field behind the school, and then leaped up to the roof!"

"And how long was he on the ground floor after the twins brought him down?" the voice asked.

"Long enough for whoever was in it to climb out and remote fly it out of there, making us all think he was escaping." Ronin concluded. "I need to get back to the school!"

"The Ninjet's on its way", confirmed the voice.

Twenty seconds later, a small, black, one-man aircraft was hovering outside the warehouse. It took off making virtually no noise at all.

When hegot back to the school, half the people had left already. Whoever Deathray was, he was probably long gone. Ronin crouched on the roof edge, watching the emergency personnel go about their work. Police cars, ambulances and fire trucks were parked haphazardly about the school grounds. Kim and her brothers were giving a statement to the police, though from the roof, Ronin could tell she was barely able to talk through her tears. A short while later, her fiancé guided her to his car. She couldn't stop crying.

"Is this really what you want?" asked the voice in his ear, "Her heart broken and thinking you're dead?"

"She's getting married next week," the ninja said quietly, "Better she should grieve my loss and go on with her life."

"But why not tell her the truth?" the voice demanded.

"Because she would want to be friends. I couldn't handle getting close to her again, and watching her live her life with someone else. This way we can both have closure."

"She will. You won't", the voice countered.

"It's my decision, Wade", Ronin growled, "The man known as Ron Stoppable is dead. He died when he made the colossal mistake of parting ways with Kim Possible in the first place. It just took awhile for death to catch up to him."

Before the voice could respond, he pushed a button on a tiny pad on his wrist, shutting off communication. He watched as the car backed out of the space; Kim was in the front seat with her head buried in her hands.

One by one, the cars left, and then the emergency vehicles. Eventually, the only person remaining was the lonely figure of a ninja, perched at the edge of the school rooftop, gazing in the direction of Kim's car long after it had gone.


	5. Chapter 4

Thanks for the kind words to: FutureGoddess, Jezrianna2.0, Spooks-a-lot, Widow Shark, Lkillingsworth, gargoylesama, aimtbj, Ari-Griffin, Fuzzie Muzzie, and Naeda.

Please note: I promised a specific event in the last chapter and I did not quite get to it, but I promise it is coming next chapter. Now on with the show:

* * *

Chapter 4 

"Take me home," her voice was numb and emotionless.

"That's where I'm headed, honey," he replied.

"No," she objected, "I mean home. I want to go to my parents' house."

He sighed heavily and slowed the car a bit to converse with his fiancé.

"Are you sure that's such a good idea?", he asked, trying to sound patient.

"It's the only thing I really am sure of right now."

"The _only_ thing?", he queried, sounding a little hurt, "You mean you're not even sure of my love for you?"

"I know you love me, Raymond," an edge of exasperated protest creeping into her voice, "I love you, too. Those things I am also sure of. There, are you happy?"

"Alright," he said gently, "I'm sorry. I was just trying to inject something positive into this horrible night. I guess I failed."

She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek, tasting the salt of her tears on her lips. "You didn't fail," she said, offering him a weak smile, "I guess I do need to be reminded of some of the good things in my life just now."

He made a lane change, and then an illegal U-turn. "I'll drop you off and then go get your things from your apartment."

"I've got a few things at home I can wear. Right now I just need to be there."

Ray said nothing, and drove in the direction of her parents' house.

Ten minutes later, Kim Possible walked through the front door of her childhood home and collapsed into her mother's waiting arms. The twins had arrived a few minutes earlier and the Drs. Possible were just absorbing the shock of their news when Kim walked in. Mrs. Dr. Possible helped her daughter upstairs while Ray and Kim's father looked helplessly up after them.

"You're welcome to stay in the guest bedroom, Ray" Dr. Possible said in a shaky voice, "Though I can't promise we're going to be much fun to hang around with the next few days."

"You guys should have some family time together," Ray responded, "I'd just be in the way."

"You're going to be part of this family soon," James Possible said, offering him a weak smile, "All the more reason to stay."

"You should take a few days off," Ray countered, "I think the best way I can help is take up your work load at the lab."

Dr. Possible put a grateful hand on the shoulder of his future son-in-law, "I'm glad Kim's got you, especially in a time like this."

Ray nodded in acceptance, "I'll go up and say good night to Kim."

Mrs. Dr. Possible excused herself without a word when she saw Ray standing at the top of the stairs. She wouldn't have been able to say anything through her tears anyway. She went downstairs to call the Stoppables. They would have received the news by now, and she wanted to let them know the Possibles were there for them.

Ray came over and sat at the edge of the bed, taking Kim's hand.

"I think we should postpone the wedding," she said quietly.

Ray squeezed her hand gently, "I understand. But maybe there's a good reason to go ahead with the wedding as planned."

She turned her face toward him expectantly. _Explain,_ her eyes demanded.

"The funeral will likely be in a few days," he began, observing the deeply pained expression on her face at the word _funeral_, "But think of this. A few days later we will stand in front of all our friends and family and join our lives together. A wedding might be just the thing to lift everyone's spirits after a tragedy like this. It's a chance for you to make a fresh start in life with your new husband. You'll finally be able to get some closure on Ron."

Kim looked at him in silence for a moment, but he could tell she was considering what he said very carefully.

"I'll have to think about it," she said finally.

"Of course", he said in his most sympathetic tone of voice. "In the meantime, get some sleep. I'll call you tomorrow."

He leaned over, kissed his fiancé, and walked downstairs.

* * *

Ray got into his car and sat staring at nothing for a few minutes, thinking, trying to clear his head and calm himself down. It wasn't working. With a half yell/half scream he slammed his fists down on the steering wheel in a rage. 

_Postpone the wedding? What is wrong with these people? _He thought to himself, _How did Ron Stoppable manage to become the center of the universe around here?_

He slammed his fists on the steering wheel again with a bellow and then proceeded to breathe slowly in an attempt to calm himself once more. He was quickly running out of patience. If the wedding were postponed, he didn't know what he would do.

_Go completely insane, _he answered himself.

A few more minutes of breathing helped somewhat. He pulled out his cell phone, made a call, and then hung up after only a few words. At least tonight wouldn't be a total waste of his time. There was one person on this earth who would understand that the death of Ron Stoppable was a reason to celebrate. With dark amusement, he realized that in a week's time, the woman who right now was on her way over to meet him at his house would no longer be his girlfriend.

She would be his mistress.

* * *

In the dark, in the familiar surroundings of her room, the tears came again. She was convinced she was all cried out when her mother helped her upstairs. But after Raymond left, she had moved to the foot of her bed where her hope chest was. Opening it, she pulled out the Kimunicator, and Ron's old hockey jersey. He'd given it to her when he'd outgrown it. She used to wear it as a night shirt, as though sleeping in it meant in some way Ron's arms were holding her while she slept. 

She curled up under the covers once again, clutching the shirt in her hands. Putting it on would have felt wrong, somehow. After all, she was engaged to a wonderful man who had pledged his life to her. It wouldn't be fair to Raymond. She merely held the shirt, stroked it, smelled it, and closed her eyes. Sobbing quietly, Kim Possible retreated from a cruel world and into her memories.

* * *

"How is it that a rock can conquer a pair of scissors, but be overcome by the flimsy nature of paper?" Big Daddy Brotherson asked the young man sitting opposite him. 

"Dude," Ron replied, a smile on his face and a secretive look in his eye, "That is the eternal mystery of the game. Sometimes a weakness can become a strength in the right circumstances."

_Wow, _Kim thought, gazing at her boyfriend with a look of surprise, _as big a goofball as Ron is, he has his deep moments. _She concluded this was probably one of the many reasons why she loved him so much.

"Quite fascinating", Brotherson observed, raising a hammy fist above his palm, "Let us engage in another round."

Ron looked into his opponent's eyes with sly determination. Simultaneously, the two held their fists above their open palms. With three strikes of the fist upon the palm, they each revealed their weapon of choice. Up until now, Brotherson had relied on rock, convinced of its invulnerability. Each time Ron had conquered him with paper. But now, he deviously switched to scissors, and outflanked his opponent.

Ron breathed a sigh of relief. He was worried it would take another six or seven rounds for Brotherson to figure it out. "You changed to scissors!" Ron exclaimed, "Dude, you so rock at this game!" (It would be later that day before Ron realized his unintended pun).

"Indeed" Brotherson said, clearly pleased with himself, "Of all the silly games I engage in, I like this new one best. What is it you wish to know?"

Ron turned and smiled at Kim. _You're on,_ his eyes told her.

"We're looking for information on a scientist by the name of David Kilgore," Kim explained, "We believe he may be involved in a recent break-in at HenchCo labs."

"He's more involved than you may realize," Brotherson said languidly, "David Kilgore used to be John Hench's top researcher. He's the man who discovered and developed a device called the Molecular Enhancer."

"Yeah," Ron said wistfully looking at his biceps, "We're familiar with it."

"What you may not know," Brotherson continued unhurriedly, "Is that when John Hench began selling this device to the highest bidders, he kept both the credit, and the profit to himself."

"So now Kilgore's looking for some payback," Kim concluded. "Do you know where we can find him?"

Brotherson regarded her sleepily, "Rumors indicate he has a lair somewhere in the Canadian Rockies."

"You sir, are a veritable fountain of exposition!" Ron said enthusiastically.

"I do what I can," Brotherson said, smiling drowsily.

Kim and Ron got up to leave.

"Do return, soon," Brotherson said slowly, "I sense you are a master of silly games. You would be a most worthy opponent."

"You got it, Big Daddy," Ron promised, "Next time I'll teach you to play chutes and ladders."

"Chutes _and_ ladders?" Brotherson looked momentarily alarmed, "Such a game must be a paradox of silliness."

"It's all that and more!" Ron said over his shoulder, waving.

"Nice work", Kim said affectionately as they walked away, "What would I ever do without you?"

"Sit around at home with no one to smooch," Ron postulated.

"Come on, sweetie," she said taking his hand, "We've got to find a mountain-top lair in the Canadian Rockies."

"Why can't the bad guys ever just live in normal houses in normal neighborhoods?" Ron wondered aloud.

Despite the fact that it was late spring, it was still cold at this elevation in the Rockies. It took awhile to find the lair, but eventually Wade homed in on some suspicious signals and they parachuted in. They were able to bypass most of the security systems, but Wade was having trouble with the motion sensors in the hallway leading to the central chamber of the lair. Team Possible crouched at the far end of the hall, waiting for word from Wade that he'd disabled the sensors.

"I still don't get it", Ron whispered, "If this is just a beef between John Hench and a disgruntled employee, why not let them duke it out? I don't see why we should do Hench's dirty work for him."

"This is the guy who invented the Molecular Enhancer," Kim explained patiently, "If it has a weakness, or can be destroyed, David Kilgore will probably have that information in a database somewhere. We could put a major damper on Hench's operation."

"OK," Ron conceded, "I can see that. Fewer henchmen in the world means less work for us."

"Exactly, and less work for us means more time alone together." She whispered, giving him a knowing look.

"Oh, I am definitely on board with the mission now!" Ron exclaimed, brightening, "What's taking Wade so long?"

Kim took out the Kimunicator, Wade appeared on the screen. "What's the latest, Wade?"

"No luck!" Wade said, frustrated, "For some reason, the motion sensors are regulated by an independent network. I can't even link up to them. The good news is, I scanned the hallway, and the sensors only work up to four feet above the floor. Above that and you won't be detected. There should be a deactivation switch on the far end of the hallway."

Kim stood up, pulled out the grappler, and aimed above the door at the far end of the hall. Once the cable was latched in place, she turned to look at Ron. Ron reached down and pulled a sleepy Rufus out of his pocket.

"We need you to get to the other side and turn off the motion sensors, buddy," Ron whispered to the rodent. "And don't fall or we're all hosed."

"Hosed?" Kim asked sarcastically.

"When in Canada…" Ron responded, shrugging.

Rufus chattered something to the two of them and then scampered nimbly along the cable.

"Rock", Ron said to himself and began giggling uncontrollably.

"What?" Kim asked.

"Rock!" Ron said again, laughing, "I told Big Daddy Brotherson he _rocks_ at Rock, Paper, Scissors. I just got that." And again he went off into uncontrolled giggling.

"You know how I feel about puns," she said, glaring at him, "Now focus!"

Rufus found the switch, disabled the sensors, and gave them a thumbs up. Kim tentatively stepped into the hallway, fully expecting alarms to blare at any second. None did.

"Let's go," Kim ordered. They moved off down the hallway.

The massive central room of the lair was one giant villain cliché. Electronic equipment was scattered about the place. Laser weapons and destructive rays were lined up menacingly against one side of the room. The obligatory giant view-screen occupied the wall opposite the entrance hall. No one seemed to be home.

Rufus found his way back into Ron's pocket. Kim crept into the central room and looked around, hoping to find something that might lead her to the Molecular Enhancer. One of the computer terminals near the view-screen had a common serial port. Whoever David Kilgore was, he was an amateur bad guy. She plugged the Kimunicator into the terminal.

"What exactly do you think you are doing?" a thin, nasally voice echoed in the huge chamber.

Ron uttered a startled yelp and dove for cover. Kim turned toward the source of the voice in a combat-ready stance. She could see no one.

"Why are you here?" the voice demanded.

"Your Molecular Enhancer has been causing havoc with my social life", Kim said seriously. She glanced quickly at Ron and winked.

"I fail to see how that's my problem," the pinched voice stated. From behind one of the banks of electronic equipment stepped Professor David Kilgore. He stood just short of four feet tall, had a thin, wiry build, was bald and wore an angry expression on his face.

Ron stood up hesitantly and looked around. Upon sight of Kilgore he let out an involuntary guffaw. _Rufus could take this guy_, he thought to himself.

"What are you laughing at?" Kilgore demanded.

"Sorry," Ron said chortling, "Usually the bad guys are all huge and scary."

Kim relaxed her guard a little.

"I mean," Ron said continuing, "You should at least have some guards or something. You know, like a squad of henchmen to-"

Kilgore cut him off with a shout of rage, "Do not say that name to me!"

"What?" Ron asked, confused, "Hench?"

"YAAARGH!", Kilgore screamed. He jerked back the sleeve of his lab coat and pounded a small fist against a wristband on his other hand. Suddenly he began to change. His chest bloated abruptly, and looked as though it would explode. His legs bulged, rippled, and swelled. His face turned a deep crimson as his high-pitched scream of rage became a deep, guttural bellow of fury. But for some spandex pants, he tore through his clothing as his size increased fourfold within a matter of seconds. A sixteen foot tall brute with hulking muscles towered above the teen heroes. He roared, swinging his massive fists in rage, destroying a nearby beam weapon and smashing it into twisted metal.

Clearly, Kilgore had made a few upgrades to the Molecular Enhancer.

"I think David just morphed into Goliath!" Ron shouted, terrified.

"How ironic", Kim observed, and vaulted out of the way of Kilgore's fists as they smashed down upon the spot where she was standing.

"Laugh at me now", Kilgore bellowed at Ron, stalking toward him.

"I'm gonna take a pass on that," Ron whimpered, and scrambled to get away.

Kim sprinted over to Ron, took out her grappler, and pulled them both to the ceiling in relative safety.

Kilgore stood glaring up at them, roaring angrily. Suddenly, Wade appeared on the chamber's main view-screen.

"Kim!" he exclaimed, "I've extracted several huge files regarding the Molecular Enhancer, but it's going to take a few days to study them. I don't think there's anything else we can do. You might as well head home."

"Yeah, no problem, dude," Ron muttered, "We'll just waltz out the front door."

Kilgore turned his attention to the large eleven-year-old currently occupying his main viewer. Wade, seeing all this through the camera on the Kimunicator, couldn't resist a non-genius moment. He stuck his tongue out and made a face.

Kilgore drove a gigantic fist through the screen and received enough voltage to drop a herd of cattle. The force of the voltage drove him backward and sent him smashing through the wall opposite the screen. Suddenly the lair had a new front door, though it opened on a thousand foot precipitous drop. Kilgore tumbled most of the way down the mountain.

Kim lowered them to the floor and retrieved the Kimunicator. Ron's attention was caught by something shiny; a red button on the main control panel.

"Self destruct button", Ron said, shaking his head, "This lair was designed by a total rookie. Sometimes I wonder if the company that builds these lairs just throws in the self-destruct option for free, knowing it'll be used and they'll be back out for another expensive lair-construction job."

A minute later, Kim and Ron were snowboarding down to the waiting Canadian Air Force Cargo Plane while two thousand feet above them, a series of explosions leveled Kilgore's hideout.

They were the only two passengers on the cargo plane. Kim sat looking straight ahead with her hands folded neatly in her lap, Ron sat quietly humming to himself, sometimes checking his watch, other times looking forward to the cockpit. After what seemed like forever, the pilot called back on the intercom.

"Ms. Possible, you wanted to be informed when we reached American air space. We just crossed over."

Ron looked at her hopefully, she returned his gaze with a sultry smile.

"Mission officially over", she purred and then pounced on him like a cat.

They had spent an afternoon discussing rules of conduct for missions. Now that they were dating Kim didn't want to get caught making out with her boyfriend at the wrong moment, or holding hands when they should be battling foes and henchmen. When they were on missions, it was all business, or at least business as usual. Missions would begin the moment they left Middleton, and would end at her discretion. Whenever she gave the word, the mission would be over and they were free to be their casual selves again. Ron was mildly tweaked at first, but after a couple of missions, saw the wisdom in this. After all, Team Possible was her creation; she was the hero, he was the sidekick. She called the shots where missions were concerned, but was very careful to treat Ron as an equal when they were over. She would often find herself very eager to declare a mission at an end, especially the longer ones.

When the co-pilot came back to use the lavatory a few minutes later, he was alarmed to see the young man was in some kind of medical distress. Ms. Possible had him pinned to the floor and was administering mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

"Is your friend all right?" He asked the young lady.

Without even coming up for air, the blonde kid gave a thumbs-up and they resumed their activity.

An hour later, the co-pilot bet the pilot they wouldn't even stop what they were doing to make the skydive when they reached Middleton airspace.

"You're betting me they'll just toss themselves out of the plane without even parting lips?" the pilot asked, incredulous.

The co-pilot merely nodded.

He won a crisp, new Canadian dollar.

* * *

Morning, and Ronin was perched on a rooftop several doors down from his parents' house. He watched the car pull into the driveway, and watched a miserable Kim Possible emerge from the vehicle with her mother. They had come to console the Stoppables. Perhaps they had also come to find consolation themselves. 

He cursed himself for being such an idiot. Faking his death had been easy. Word was out this Lord Deathray person was looking to eliminate both him and Kim Possible, and Ronin surmised the Reunion was the most likely place Deathray would attempt to carry out his threat. By the time he pulled into the parking lot the previous night, Wade was already monitoring the area and had detected Deathray hovering far above the high school. When he fired the first shot, Ronin was already in his battlesuit, tossing his backpack with his driver license and a few other personal items onto the front steps. As anticipated, they were obliterated in the explosion, but there was enough to positively identify Ron Stoppable as the only blast victim. He hadn't anticipated Kim pursuing him up to the roof, and it was difficult looking into her eyes without ripping off his mask and revealing himself.

Ever since he found out Kim was getting married he'd been utterly miserable. Depression was his constant companion. After awhile, the idea of faking his demise began to appeal to him. He entertained the fantasy of a lone hero, romantic and tragic, thwarting evil while never having a real identity. Not that he wasn't already too far from it. When he learned of Kim's engagement, a huge part of him died inside. Ronin barely knew who he was anymore. The notion of burying Ron Stoppable and living out his life as Ronin became an obsession, and he finally made it a reality. Along the way, he had never once though about what it might do to his parents, or even to Kim's parents for that matter. They had been a second family to him, and all _he_ could think about was ending that part of him that was Ron Stoppable.

He couldn't face them now. His mother and father wouldn't understand, and the shock of finding her son alive after learning of his death just might drive his mother to the grave. And Kim? Kim would hate him now if she ever found out. He couldn't live with the shame of that. Ron Stoppable had a sizeable fortune thanks to his Naco royalties and subsequent investments, and he'd set enough aside to take care of his parents for the rest of their lives. Ron Stoppable, Ronin decided, was better off dead.

He turned to leave when he caught the glint of sunlight on metal; a car had turned onto the street and pulled up to the Stoppable house. Ron saw Kim's fiancé get out and stand there as Kim came out to greet him. She gave him a kiss and a long embrace. This was too much for Ronin. He leapt from the roof and sprinted blindly, as far as he could, from his former life.


	6. Chapter 5

Thanks for the kind words to: SestrenNK, LKillingsworth, and Widow Shark

Note: I've gone back over the previous chapters and tightened up one or two things. One noteable point is that Monique is now no longer married at the ten year reunion, but rather, the person she is with is her boyfriend. Of course there will be a reason for this. Also fixed some of the structure, etc. since I'm such a raging noob. To all who have been so kind as to leave a review, I do intend to read your stuff at some point, but right now I have this story rattling around in my brain and I gots to get it out. "It consumes me, Darling(s), as only hero work can."

So, curious about how big a creep Ray really is? Read on:

* * *

Chapter 5 

Sleep had not come easy for Kim. And when she finally did fall asleep, waking up proved to be even more difficult. She wanted more than anything else in the world to stay in bed for days, never leaving her room. Emotionally numb, she showered and dressed, ate her breakfast in silence, and accompanied her mother over to the Stoppable house.

Having been an only child; Ron's room, his things, anything that was Ron's, had been pretty much left alone. Walking into that house was like stepping into a museum of the history of Ron Stoppable. Kim would need some support. She called Raymond, apologized for waking him up and asked him to meet her at Ron's house.

* * *

"OK…yes, of course I'll be there. No, don't worry about it, I'll just work late again…what's the address?… OK, I'm just gonna shower and eat breakfast. I'll be there as soon as I can…yeah…no problem…I love you too, Kim", Ray hung up the phone and sat at the edge of the bed. 

"'I love you too, Kim!'" she said mockingly, rolling over to look at him.

"Knock it off," he growled, "Don't pretend you're not enjoying this."

"Of course I'm enjoying it," she confirmed, "And I intend to enjoy it to the fullest."

He brooded, looking at her. Ray usually didn't stand for disrespect from his women, but he was willing to let a little insubordination slide when they were as beautiful as she was. Same went with Kim.

He had fallen in love with Kim Possible the second he laid eyes on her. At least, it was love as Ray understood it, which to him meant: someone he wished to posses. He'd seen her on TV, accepting her Nobel award, and - realizing this was the same Kim Possible who used to be a superhero - resolved to make her his. Women were always throwing themselves at Ray, but he knew with Kim it would be different. She wasn't hung up on appearances or status. He would have to pretend to listen to her, pretend to care about what she was saying. He'd have to learn to be patient and attentive. He knew it was going to be a lot of work but just the idea that he could prop such a beautiful woman up in front of the world and declare "this belongs to me" made it all worth it. Kim Possible would be the ultimate trophy wife.

He spent a year studying her, reading up on everything he could about her. He had a degree in engineering and thought it could be put to use in her lab, which would put him closer to her. So he moved to Middleton and hired a private investigator who found out for him the things he couldn't learn from the media. The most important bit of information was that she hadn't had a steady relationship with anyone since college. Furthermore, the college relationship had been with that idiot sidekick of hers and ended just days before they were to be married.

Something like that, Ray knew, could seriously damage a person, so he decided the best angle would be to play the caring boyfriend. He practiced sounding like one in front of a mirror and was pleasantly surprised to discover he was pretty good at faking sincerity. When he wanted to, he could sound like an attentive listener. In fact he experimented with a few women, and got so proficient at it, he began timing the hours between the point in which he introduced himself to a woman, and the minute she told him she loved him. His record was 36 hours, but he didn't really count it officially. That one had some serious emotional baggage and was looking for the right man to save her from the misery of being herself. Pathetic. Last he'd heard of her, she'd taken her own life. Whatever.

His plan went off beautifully. Knowing he'd be turned down for the job, he went back to her lab the next day to ask her out. This would establish in her mind that he'd just met her and wanted to know her better. Ray knew that the best way into Kim's life was through her father. When the private investigator called and told him Dr. Possible was on his way to his daughter's lab, he showed up a half hour later and introduced himself. Handshake, short conversation, got the job.

"At least I won half the battle" he said to her, grinning.

She giggled and blushed in response. Bingo.

After that it was a matter of going through the motions. Take things slow, and eventually she would belong to him. There were two things he hadn't counted on, however. The first was her near-obsession over her relationship with Ron Stoppable. She was open and honest with him about it, sharing her deepest hurts and how she felt Ron had been 'The One'. Sometimes, though, listening to her simpering 'poor me' stories about Ron made him want to chew glass. How could such a loser have such an effect on such a gorgeous woman?

The second thing he hadn't counted on was Kim being such a prude. The most she ever let Ray do was kiss her, and even that wasn't very often. It was frustrating, and at one point he assumed she used abstinence as a test of his commitment. So if he wanted her, he'd have to wait for her. Oh, but the things he thought about doing to her…

Cheating on her hadn't been part of the plan. He considered it a bonus. One night, after yet another seemingly endless conversation about Ron, Ray excused himself on the pretense he needed to get an early night's sleep, and left her apartment. Didn't matter to him where he was going, he just needed to calm his nerves after listening to the chalkboard/fingernail experience that was Kim's past. Outside, he spotted a car with a shadowy figure behind the wheel, staring at Kim's apartment building. Concluding it was yetanother nosy reporter, or worse, one of Kim's many admirers who sometimes brought flowers, or candy or marriage proposals (OK, he admitted to himself, he _liked_ the admirers. Such pathetic losers gave him the opportunity to play the protective fiancé, and he got to tell them all how she belonged to him), he stalked over and rapped on the window.

What he found in the car, however, was one of the most beautiful women he'd ever laid eyes on. When he introduced himself as Kim Possible's fiancé, she seemed to become very interested in him. The fact that she'd just recently gotten out of jail intrigued him. How did such a hottie become a criminal? He asked her if she wanted to get a drink, and it went from there.

Now, here she was, lying in his bed the morning after the death of Ron Stoppable. She had a malicious grin on her face.

"Something funny?" he challenged her.

"Just this whole situation," she said, "It's quite entertaining. You amuse me."

He glared at her, "I ought to smack you for that."

"I'd just smack you back," she said calmly. She was laying on her left side with her head propped up by her left hand. She raised her right hand above her and - never taking her eyes off him – balled it up into a glowing green fist. The glow accentuated her pale green skin, and danced in her green eyes. It seemed the only thing not green about her was her waist-length raven-black hair.

"Better go," she told him, "Your princess is waiting."

He said nothing, got up, and stomped out of the house. The sound of her chuckling followed after him.

* * *

"Thanks so much for coming," she said with a melancholy sigh. 

"What else would I do?", Ray asked her, "You need me, I come running, that's how this relationship works."

Kim put her arms around him and kissed him gratefully, "I don't deserve you."

He said nothing, but pulled her to him in a loving embrace. She looked up at the blue sky, the clouds, the smashed remains of the treehouse…

* * *

The treehouse had become a favorite meeting place for them. Ron had painted the word 'other' between the words 'no' and 'girls' on the 'no girls allowed' sign. Kim had been a little embarrassed but also a little flattered. They came here when they wanted to get away from the world. 

They didn't always come up here to make out, though they did plenty of that. Sometimes it was just to be together, talking, holding hands, or just enjoying the intimacy that comes when you're with someone you love. The relationship was settling into a comfortable romance. In fact, the only thing that seemed different about their relationship from the way it always had been was the sharp increase in physical affection between them.

Lately, the missions had become less frequent. They'd had a confrontation with Dementor and had thwarted Kilgore, who'd smashed his way into a top secret lab in the Italian Alps. Even the media couldn't resist calling his enhanced personae 'Goliath'.

Drakken was riding the extradition train. Thanks to the destruction caused by his Diablo-bots, just about every country on earth intended to put him on trial. He discovered that the one thing worse than failing miserably at taking over the world, was almost succeeding at it. He would be in jail for a long, long time.

Ron enjoyed a mild upswing in popularity at school thanks to a couple of factors. The party at Drakken's lair had become something of a legend at Middleton High; Ron's classmates raved about its success, while class members below the Senior level talked about it in awed tones. In addition, Ron was dating a cheerleader, who also happened to be the most desirable and seemingly unattainable girl at Middleton High. Ron's classmates looked at him differently these days.

Unfortunately, so did some of the females. Lunchtime one day, Kim had to go to the study hall to finish up a term paper. Jessica was flirting with Ron in the cafeteria within earshot of Bonnie. Ron had no intention of going any further than light flirting, but he was enjoying the attention, so he didn't put a stop to it either. Bonnie spread the rumor that Ron may already be tiring of Kim; spread it as fast as her jaw could flap. When the rumor reached study hall, Kim tried to ignore it. While she believed Ron was faithful to her, it was a little embarrassing to know he was flirting with a girl in public. No one likes to be whispered about in the school hallways.

Immediately after school in a crowded Senior Hall, Kim confronted Bonnie about the rumor.

"I can't help it if Ron has gottentired of you," Bonnie said with a little more venom than usual.

"He was just flirting," Kim insisted, "It didn't mean anything."

"Then why are you so upset?" Bonnie asked innocently.

"Maybe she's getting tired of your attempts to jam a blade in her back", came Ron's voice from a few feet away. The rumor had just gotten to him and he, too, decided Bonnie could use some talking to. His raised voice resulted in a hushed Senior Hall. Everyone waited to see if Bonnie would verbally savage Ron.

He didn't give her a chance. "Kim," he said turning to face the redhead, "I guess I got a little carried away. Girls usually don't pay me that kind of attention. I didn't realize what it might do to you. Forgive me?"

"Always", she said, taking his hand and squeezing it.

"Oh, and Bonnie," Ron said turning to her, "Just because Jessica wanted a slice of Stoppable Pie doesn't mean I was going to give her any. How's Brick these days, or should I ask Monique?"

Kim and Ron walked away leaving Bonnie to stew in her own fume.

"What do you say we hit the treehouse?" Kim asked teasingly, "I think _I'd_ like a slice of Stoppable Pie."

"You should try it with whipped cream", he suggested helpfully.

It was the warmest part of a late Spring afternoon, bees droned about the yard, while large puffy clouds lumbered across the sky. The treehouse was their cozy afternoon hideout. Ron sat on one end of the couch with one foot on the floor, and the other up against the back of the couch. Kim was curled up against him with his arms around her. They were each thinking their own thoughts, enjoying the closeness of each other and the comfortable silence between them.

The prom was behind them; graduation was coming, and then the summer. Next fall seemed far away, and they were both thankful for that. Kim had been accepted to Go City University (Home of the Gofers) as a pre-med major with a full scholarship. Unfortunately for Ron, his GPA came back to haunt him. It would take a couple of years atLowerton Community College to pull his grades up to University standards, but when he did, he would transfer to GCU to be with Kim. They both dreaded the day when they would have to go to separate schools, but they would see each other as often as they could, and there was always the hero work. Team Possible would not be shut down just because they were graduating. Ron still wasn't sure what he wanted to do with his life. The thought caused a sigh to escape his lips.

"You ok, Babe?" Kim asked drowsily.

"I'm fine," Ron replied, "Just thoughts about the future. College."

"Let's not think about that right now," she protested softly, "Everything will work out. I want to enjoy our afternoon."

She turned in his arms, leaned her face close to his and kissed him gently. They held each other like this for a moment, and then she laid her head on his chest.

"I promise we'll talk about it. Maybe tonight", she said, a thought occurring to her, "Why don't you come over for dinner and afterward we'll talk about what's bothering you."

"That'll work." Ron agreed. They fell back into silence. She caressed his chest and listened to his heartbeat. He stroked her hair, watching the way it fell about her shoulders and almost down to her hips. They both wished it were somehow possible to stop time altogether and just live forever in one moment.

The wall opposite the couch shattered with a thunderous crack. Startled, they both tumbled to the floor. Kim scrambled to the square hole in the floor to peer out. Another blow came and the damaged wall was obliterated in a shower of splinters and pieces of wood. There, at eye level with the treehouse, stood Goliath Kilgore.

He grabbed the tree trunk and shook it vigorously, rattling the two teens inside. Peering in, he roared in anger and tried to grab Ron with his massive fist.

"Go",Ron shouted to Kim, "I'll keep him busy."

Kim slipped through the floor and shimmied to the ground. She pulled out the Kimunicator.

"What's up?" Wade appeared on the screen.

"Kilgore's here" Kim said frantically, "He's trying to hurt Ron."

Kilgore had Ron by one leg and pulled him from the treehouse. Ron flailed about, yelping helplessly.

"I believe the effects of the Molecular Enhancer can be reversed with a burst of static electricity. The electrical field should trigger a cascade failure of the Enhancer at the molecular level." Wade explained hurriedly.

"Great, how do we do that?"

"The Kimunicator's batteries should do the trick", Wade replied, "The problem is, Kilgore has to be in direct contact with the battery just as it discharges. I can set the battery on a timed delay, but you've got to find a way to get that thing into contact with Kilgore without him brushing or throwing it away."

Kilgore dropped Ron and turned his attention to Kim. She whirled around, ran straight up the trunk of the tree, pushed off and somersaulted over Kilgore. As she did so, she tossed the Kimunicator into the treehouse. Kilgore turned to follow her.

"Ron!" Kim shouted to him, "Get the Kimunicator! Wade will explain everything!"

Kim squared off against Kilgore while Ron climbed back up into the treehouse. Wade briefed Ron as quick as he could. Ron looked wildly about, he was searching for something specific.

Kim dodged and ducked Kilgore's attempts to smash her into the ground. She was trying to lead him away from the treehouse, and having some success, when she heard Ron's muffled voice.

"Hey! Short stack! What's wrong? Planet not small enough for ya?"

Kilgore turned and bellowed at the treehouse. Kim smacked her forehead with her hand. Was Ron actually _taunting_ a sixteen foot tall muscle-bound giant?

"Yeah, that's right Jimminy Cricket, I'm talking to you! Careful where you walk around here, you might get stepped on!" Ron hollered.

Kilgore bellowed and crashed a fist into the treehouse. Kim watched in horror as Goliath reigned blow after blow on the structure until it was barely a wooden platform in a tree. She looked up and saw, standing on that platform, Ron with his slingshot drawn tight.

"Booyah, little man!", Ron cried firing the slingshot.

In mid-flight, the battery suddenly glowed a bright white, striking Kilgore on the left shoulder. The monster cried out in fury and pain as bolts of electricity began to play across his massive form. Three seconds later, Professor David Kilgore's diminutive form was lying in the grass, unconscious. Wisps of acrid smoke drifted up from various parts of him. The Molecular Enhancer on his wrist was fused and clearly inoperable. Later, when the police came to haul him away, they wouldn't be able to remove it.

Kim ran over to the tree and looked up at Ron. He was bruised all over, and bleeding from a deep cut on his right forearm, but otherwise he was OK. He looked down and smiled.

"Help me out with something," he asked her, "Is it 'irony' or 'coincidence' that a Jewish kid just took down a giant called Goliath with a slingshot?"

She laughed. "I'd call it 'spankin'!"

Ron seemed to have gained a certain confidence in himself lately. Whether it was because they were in love, or that he was simply growing up, she couldn't tell. Whatever it was, she liked it.

* * *

About mid-day, Ray had to excuse himself and get to the lab. Already work was piling up, and with Kim's father taking a few days off, he was going to have to put in some long hours down there. 

Mr. Stoppable set about making funeral arrangements while Kim and her mother did their best to console Mrs. Stoppable, and each other. The police came by to ask a few of the usual questions; who were Ron's enemies, did anyone have a grudge against him, etc. Stoppable relatives began arriving in the afternoon. Kim and her mother felt it would be best to get out of the way for awhile so they excused themselves and drove home.

Kim sighed heavily as they got in the car, "I don't know what I would have done if Raymond hadn't been there this morning. This all feels so overwhelming."

"Ray's a good guy" her mother agreed, "Have you guys talked about the wedding?"

"He thinks we should go ahead as planned", Kim told her and explained his reasons.

"That actually doesn't sound like such a bad idea", Kim's mother observed, "Maybe a nice wedding would be a good way to put this behind us."

"Yeah", Kim said unconvincingly, "But what about the Stoppables? I don't want to hurt them."

"I think they'd understand, Honey. They love you as much as they ever loved Ron. If you're happy, then they'll be happy for you."

"I guess so", Kim said and then fell into silence. The idea that the Stoppables loved her like a daughter brought fresh waves of emotional pain and she felt she had done all the crying she could do that day.

In truth, the wedding was furthest from her mind at the moment. She kept going over the events of the previous night. The word 'Deathray' played over and over like a looped track in her thoughts. Who was he? Why did he want to kill her and Ron? Did he know where she lived?

After dinner that night, Kim sat on her bed with the Kimunicator in her hands. She'd grilled the twins on everything they knew about Lord Deathray, but information was scarce. She had a hunch Wade might know something. That is, if Wade was still around. She hadn't talked to him in a few years. After she quit hero work, they had stayed in touch, but the correspondence became less and less frequent. When the twins set up their own operation, Wade seemed hurt they didn't need him, though he insisted everything was cool. After awhile they simply fell out of contact with each other.

She pressed the 'send' button on the Kimunicator. It beeped a few times.

* * *

He sat staring at the monitor, torn about what to do. He knew she would try to contact him in light of what had happened. But he'd made a deal with Ron… 

_Oops! _he thought angrily, _I mean 'Ronin'._

The deal was: No contact with Kim if he and Wade were going to work together. Initially, Wade didn't really see a problem, since he and Kim never talked anyway. It had been several years since their last conversation. But he never thought Ron would do something so idiotic as fake his own death. He knew Ron was still in love with her. He knew how much it pained Ron to think she would be marrying someone else. But he also knew Ron was the one who had ended their relationship in college. Whatever his reasons were, he never shared them with Wade.

Wade punched a few buttons, cutting off the signal from the Kimunicator. He had given his word, yes, but it was more than that. In some ways, Ron had saved his life, and he owed Ron big time.

_Oops!_ He thought mockingly, _I mean, 'Ronin'._

_

* * *

_

In the deep twilight, she stood atop the roof of the Possible house, looking out over Middleton. A sudden thunderstorm had moved in, seemingly from nowhere. It brought back memories of Drakken's weather machine, the janitor, the Vacrometer, and Ron as a spy. There was barely a memory she had in her life that didn't involve Ron Stoppable in some way.

She looked down at herself. At least the battlesuit still fit. She had her grappler, some knockout gas, and one or two other tools. The twins promised to make her a few things, maybe tweak up the suit.

The rain began to pour.

That afternoon in the Stoppable's kitchen, crying her eyes out with Ron's mother, she felt so helpless. She hated that feeling. She hated Deathray even more. Hunting him down would help her make some sense of the loss of Ron Stoppable. She clenched her fists and made a silent vow.

Lightning ripped the sky.

Thunder shook the earth.

Kim Possible had come out of retirement.


	7. Chapter 6

Muchas Gracias to: Widow Shark (aka Jessica Ann), Jezriana 2.0, recon228, Tanya16, L Killingsworth, FutureGoddess, aimtbj, KitsuneAkurei, Spooks-a-lot, kimnronever, and finally a thanks, a spelchek and some punctuation to domisMINE.

This chapter: fake techno-babble alert! Let's find out how Ron got those sweet ninja skills…

* * *

Chapter 6

"I'm reading five more heat signatures at the far end of the northwest corridor. Other than that I don't think there's anyone else in the building." Wade's voice informed him.

"Got it," Ronin replied, "See if you can get into their billing systems and decipher who they might have sold weapons to in the last year."

"You really think they'd keep a record of who was billed for what?", Wade asked skeptically.

"Not in the literal sense. But an outfit like this has to be keeping some kind of track of their inventory, and who the stuff is sold to. Whatever it is, a coded ledger, or a seemingly useless database, that'll have the answers we're looking for."

"Alright, but I'm going to have to disconnect from the interface to do this." Wade said.

"I'm not going anywhere." Ronin replied. He shifted on his perch in the rafters.

In his online search for information about Lord Deathray, Wade had stumbled across a coded and heavily guarded URL. The website was the home page for a weapons firm, specializing in laser and ray type weaponry, although they carried a little bit of everything. If you wanted spinning tops of doom, they had a few in stock. Wade discovered an electronic copy of a shipping manifest for a repulsor beam. Ronin figured that _had_ to be Deathray. He'd never seen anyone else use such a virtually harmless weapon.

The weapons firm was in a warehouse located on a small island north of New Zealand. The Ninjet got him there in two hours. Unseen and unheard, he landed on the beach and infiltrated the compound. So far, no one had been alerted to his presence. Because the weapons facility had an isolated computer network, it was necessary for someone to sneak into the main offices and plant a transmitter. After doing just that, Ronin made his way into the warehouse itself and found a hidden place to perch high up among the rafters.

"OK," came Wade's voice in his ear, "I think I might have something. See what you can make of this."

Ronin turned to face a wall. From the Katana-shaped logo on his chest, a tiny projection put the image of a database on the surface of the wall in front of him. Ronin studied it; a page full of numbers and letters in a seemingly random pattern. The entire page was made up of squares, some blank, while others contained the random numbers and letters. None of it made any sense.

"This is the only thing on the site that could be a record of sales." Wade said, "I found a couple of pages that are similar to this, but nothing like what you're looking for."

"How many pages are there that look like this?"

"Three total."

"Can you put up all three images?"

The projected image flickered and was replaced by an image of three pages that appeared similar to the first; squares across the surface with random letters and numbers in some of the squares, while others were blank.

"See if you can superimpose the pages, starting with the second page's first column of squares aligned with the first page's last column of squares," Ronin said.

"I see where you're going with this" Wade's voice said in his ear, "Hang on a sec."

The image on the wall flickered again. Ronin looked around to make sure he was unseen and then looked back to the image. It still made no sense.

"Let me play with this a few minutes," Wade told him, "I'll get back to you."

The projection cut off, and Ronin resumed his perch on a high rafter in the main warehouse. Though everything was in crates, Ronin could practically see all the destructo-rays, the mind-scramblers, the neutronalizers, and so forth. There always seemed to be a big market for supervillain type weapons.

He took the Lotus Blade from his back and occupied his time by changing it into different weapons. He was becoming very proficient with the blade's operation. _Naginata,_ he thought and the blade instantly morphed into the long Japanese-style sword. _Nun chucks_; again it changed. _Boomerang_, he thought, and the blade obeyed, though the boomerang was metal. He learned long ago that the blade did not obey his commands in the literal sense, but rather, it sensed what he wished, and produced that particular weapon. He found he could get the blade to form itself into just about anything as long as it was metal, had less than four square feet of flat surface, and had no mechanical parts.

* * *

His mind drifted back to the day he acquired the Lotus Blade. He'd been training at Master Sensei's school for four years. In that time he had learned the ways of Ninjitsu. He had arrived at the school less than a month after his all-too-painful parting with Kim. In fact, it was the circumstances of that parting that had brought him to the school. Master Sensei took him in without comment or judgment, and patiently set out to train Ron Stoppable in the ways of the Ninja.

The first two years of training had been tough, almost brutal, but Ron relished it. It kept him occupied, kept his thoughts away from what happened with Kim. Slowly he began to develop the senses of a shadow warrior. Unfortunately for him, he was, and would always be, Ron Stoppable, which meant he was prone to clumsiness. Still, the skills were honed, albeit slowly, and his fighting techniques developed.

Near the end of the fourth year, Ron noticed that Master Sensei was teaching him the same lesson, morning after morning. _Leap from the roof to the top of the pole,_ he would order. At first, Ron would come crashing down, painfully, in a heap at Sensei's feet. But eventually, Ron successfully made the leap and would stand triumphantly at the top of the pole. Sensei would merely nod and walk away, and that was it for the day. After awhile, Ron began to grow puzzled. Every morning he would leap from the roof to the top of the pole, Sensei would nod, and then walk away.

At last, Ron went to see Master in his chambers. He bowed low, and then asked why he was not being taught anything new anymore.

"You must learn to successfully make the leap," Sensei told him impassively.

"But I do!" Ron protested, "Every morning I leap from the roof to the top of the pole and do not fall."

"That is not a leap, it is merely a first step. You must successfully make the leap."

Silence between them. Sensei gazed at his pupil without a trace of emotion on his face. Ron studied his teacher closely, but found no answers there.

_The leap from the roof is merely a first step._

It was time for him to leave the school. Realization played across his face.

"There is no more I can teach you," Sensei said calmly, "You must now go and learn what lessons there are to be learned from the world."

Ron nodded and stood up. "I wish to take the Lotus Blade with me," He heard himself say.

"How is it you think the blade belongs to you?" Sensei asked him. He did not seem angered by the request.

Ron simply held out his hand. The blade tore through the wall behind Sensei and sailed through the air into Ron's grasp.

"It would be wrong" Ron declared, "To leave this blade on a shelf collecting dust, when it could be used as a force to thwart evil."

Sensei stood up, nodded, and bowed low. "You are the blade's master," he said to his pupil, "It has been waiting these past years for you to claim it."

When he arrived back in Middleton, the first person Ron contacted was Wade.

* * *

"Score!" Wade exclaimed, rousing Ronin from his memories, "I've got it."

Ronin returned the blade to his back and turned toward the wall again. "Go", he said.

"I divided the pages into four-square blocks", Wade explained, "Then, I virtually folded each of the blocks into cubes. Look what happens when you put two adjoining cubes together with their blank sides facing each other."

The image on the wall revealed two cubes, one stacked upon another. The seemingly random numbers lined up to show names and dates. The one projected on the wall read 'Dementor, Shrink Ray, Swiss Lair, April 16'.

"That's our manifest" Ronin confirmed, "Are there any orders listed for Deathray?"

"Two", Wade answered, "Two deliveries early this year, but they're both marked 'Middleton lab' and don't give a specific address."

"But it's something," Ronin said, "When I get back to Middleton, I want you to scour all the websites that have anything to do with any of the labs located in town. There's got to be a delivery confirmation. Someone signed for those weapons. I want to know who."

"That's a lot of laboratories", Wade reminded him. Because Global Justice was headquartered in Middleton, many top-secret lab facilities had decided to relocate there for security reasons. Middleton had practically become one giant top-secret research facility.

"I know," Ronin said sympathetically, "But right now it's all we've got. In the meantime, I guess my work is finished here."

He turned to make an exit and suddenly stopped.

"Wade."

"Yeah?"

"It occurs to me we may have an opportunity here. This is a weapons factory, after all, and there isn't a country on the planet that legally sanctions the stuff this place sells."

"You wanna shut this place down?" Wade guessed.

"Hard." Ronin confirmed, and dropped from the rafters.

* * *

At twenty years old, Wade still lived with his parents. He'd moved from his room and turned the basement of the house into one massive computer station. Monitors where everywhere. Most of the stuff he had built himself. He held patents to software and electronics systems that wouldn't be available to the general public for decades. Some of it was so advanced, only Wade would ever know how it operated. Most of the monitors he used were three-dimensional holographic systems with the kind of interface found in science fiction films. Every now and then, Wade would sell off something he'd designed and fund his and Ronin's operation with the profits. Wade could care less about mansions, or cars, or material wealth. He was addicted to hero work. In addition, Ronin contributed millions of his own money, having transferred his Naco royalties to off-shore accounts just before he faked his death. Between them they were able to afford things like the Ninjet; a one man aircraft that operated on a hydrogen burning engine and made almost no noise when in flight. Ronin, of course, was not a pilot. Wade did all the piloting by remote from his basement.

Wade had also developed Ronin's battlesuit, and it was something he was very proud of. Made of an advanced Kevlar-based material, it could withstand just about any projectile thrown at it, from bullets to small missiles. The Katana logo on the chest of the suit housed everything from a global communicator to advanced scanning and detection apparatus. With a tiny microphone located at the larynx, and a tiny speaker sewn into the ear fabric of the mask, Wade could carry on conversations with Ronin anywhere in the world, thanks to three dedicated satellites positioned in various strategic orbits. No more need for a handheld computer to house all the scanning and communication equipment. Ronin wore it all on his chest, on a razor thin piece of integrated technology. Two tiny cameras with every type of capability (including infra-red and night vision) sewn into the headband, faced both forward and rearward. The suit could absorb and even store unfocused energy, like electricity or certain types of kinetic energy, but it could not withstand focused beams, such as rays, or lasers.

The suit also came equipped with a cloaking device. Wade found a way to manipulate light particles so that the suit allowed light to pass through it without reflecting back to the human eye. A flick of the switch and Ronin would appear to just vanish, though physically he'd still be there. There were drawbacks to this feature, however. It used a huge amount of power (storage cells for the suit's power were located in the heels of Ronin's boots), so the cloak couldn't stay engaged for very long. In addition, Ronin had to pull his mask completely down over his face, which meant he was blind while cloaked. And finally, whenever he was cloaked, he couldn't move without giving away his position. Anyone looking directly at him while cloaked couldn't see him, of course, but if he moved even a few inches, anyone looking at him would see a human-shaped distortion in their field of vision.

But the real beauty of the suit, as far as Wade was concerned, was the Neurological Interface. In his basement, Wade had a separate station set up that had sleeves for his arms, legs, and each of his fingers. In addition, he had goggles wired directly to the cameras in the battlesuit so he could see everything Ronin saw, and more. The arm and leg sleeves were connected to an interface that allowed Wade to assist, enhance, or just plain control whoever was wearing the battlesuit. Through tiny amounts of neural-electrical generation, Wade could, for instance, move Ronin's arm, make a fist, make him walk, make him jump, etc. But thanks to the suit's built-in neurological enhancers, Wade could also make Ronin jump higher than he normally could, or run faster, or hit harder. All of it was based on delivering a tiny, precise neural-electrical charge into a given muscle on Ronin's body in order to stimulate it. The Neural-Interface manifested itself as wire-thin crimson stripes that glowed whenever they were in operation.

All of these features were brilliantly packaged by Wade into a skin-tight suit that – except for the stripes – looked like any typical ninja outfit. Thanks to a combination of Ron's ninja abilities, his prowess with the Lotus Blade, and Wade's technical expertise along with his real-time physical assistance via the Neural-Interface, Ronin was one formidable superhero.

And Wade loved it. When Kim and Ron had parted ways in college, Kim made a half-hearted attempt to do solo work for awhile, but she had clearly lost the enthusiasm for it. One day she abruptly quit, and left Wade with virtually nothing to do. When the Twins set up their own operation, Wade hoped he would be a part of it, but they didn't need him. They were geniuses themselves, after all. As the months, and then the years went by, Wade slowly sank into a depression. He was once part of a team that saved the world on a frequent basis. What was there to do in life that could compare to that? After awhile, Kim stopped calling or e-mailing, and they fell out of contact with each other. Eventually, Wade would spend whole days in his room, all monitors dark but for one solitary screen flickering in front of him with nothing on it, just staring listlessly. His parents became alarmed, but nothing they tried could pull him out of the depression he was spiraling into. Finally, even that one monitor flickered out, and Wade just sat in the dark, alone, doing nothing.

Then one day, for the first time in months, Wade's private phone-line rang. It was Ron with a proposal. Develop a suit, similar to Kim's white battlesuit, and partner up with him.

Wade couldn't say 'yes' fast enough.

* * *

Ronin was on the warehouse floor by the time Wade hooked up to the Neural-Interface.

Three guards were standing in a group in one of the warehouse aisles. Ronin dropped silently into their midst, taking one guard out with a lightning-fast kick while Wade took out the other two using Ronin's fists.

It had been just short of a year since Ronin began his career as a hero, and they were still working out the intricacies of the interface, but the more missions they went on, the more it began to feel like second nature. In fact, Ronin was enjoying a very pleasant side effect of the neural-electrical stimulation aspect of the suit. Every time Wade assisted with a maneuver, Ronin's muscles would flex, sometimes involuntarily. As a result he was developing an extremely lean, muscular build. If high-school-aged Ron Stoppable had been able to see his future self in a picture or a mirror, the descriptive term he would have used was 'ripped'.

Three guards lay unconscious on the floor.

"Anything here we can use?" Ronin asked looking about.

"Scanning", Wade said. A beam emitted from Ronin's chest and swathed the room. "Two aisles over. I think there's something that has potential."

Ronin leaped to the top of the stacked crates and bounded over two aisles.

"Which crate?", he asked.

"Third from the far end; the tall, thin one."

Ronin dropped into the aisle and strode to the crate. "OK, now what?"

"We'll need to remove it from its packaging and then plug the suit into it." Wade informed him.

The suit glowed crimson. Three seconds later, a rather nasty looking ray cannon was liberated from its packaging. Ronin reached down and pulled a thin wire from the toe of his boot.

"Where?" he asked.

"Base of the control panel", Wade answered.

Ronin plugged in and the machine powered up.

"It's a Sonic Combustulator," Wade explained, "It uses high frequency soundwaves to generate heat, and make things combust."

Ronin looked around, nodding, "Lot of firewood in here."

"Just pull the trigger and aim wherever."

He bathed the warehouse with the beam and watched as an instant inferno erupted. Unplugging the suit from the machine, he sprinted up the aisle for the nearest door.

"Four guards approaching from that exit," Wade cautioned him.

The door burst open and four huge men ran in, staring at the fire. Alarms began to blare. Never breaking stride, Ronin ran straight for them. They noticed him too late. At the last second, the suit glowed crimson, Ronin leaped into the air, spinning as he did so. To the guards it almost looked like a small, black and red tornado had descended upon them. It was their last conscious thought for some time.

"I relocated the Ninjet to the beach directly north of your position," Wade notified him, "I need to de-interface and upload a virus into the factory network."

"Copy that", Ronin acknowledged pulling the blade from his back. _Claw and chain_, he thought, and the blade morphed into a length of chain with a claw attached to one end. He reached the perimeter of the compound, a fifteen foot high electric chain link fence standing in his way. Hurling the claw, it attached itself to the fence. Lightning seemed to travel along the chain and over Ronin's suit. Three guards approached from behind and began firing automatic weapons. Ronin pulled down a section of the fence, then turned to the guards. Holding his hands out in front of him, he flicked his wrist, and the stored electricity erupted from him and flew at the guards. They dropped instantly.

The warehouse began disintegrating in a series of massive explosions. Ronin slipped through the fence and ran for the beach, climbed inside the black one-man aircraft, and shot away into the night sky.

After some time in the air, Wade appeared on the cockpit viewscreen, "The Middleton Gazette just posted your obituary on their website. Care to read it?"

_No_, thought Ronin, "Sure, why not?"

Wade's image was replaced by a page full of text.

_Stoppable, Ronald. Beloved son and cherished friend. Born in Middleton Medical Center. Graduated from Middleton High School…_

* * *

"Martha R. Patterson"

_Applause._

"John Roger Peterson"

_Applause._

"May B. Plausible"

_Applause._

"Kimberly Anne Possible."

_Cheers._

Graduation. Both the Possible and Stoppable families erupted in elated cheering, as did most of the Senior class. Ron watched Kim walk across the stage and accept her diploma from Mr. Barkin with an excited smile on her face.

"Yeah! All right, KP! Wooo!"

Kim shook Barkin's hand and waved to her parents, then found Ron and waved to him.

Ron managed to pull his GPA up a little in the final semester and graduate with his class. He'd still be going to Lowerton Community College, but that was three months away. He was looking forward to a summer with Kim. Although it was somewhat bittersweet. Rufus was spending the summer with Wade.

A long time ago, a small-time villain by the name of Drew Lipski had stolen a top-secret intelligence-boosting ray from the U.S. government. His plan was to boost the intelligence of various animals, and take over the world with his personal animal army. Things hadn't gone as planned. Lipski never bothered to anticipate the possibility that the animals might not want to do the bidding of an egomaniacal, blue-skinned villain. Early experiments had been disastrous. Lipski boosted the intelligence of a yak only to have it act aloof and uninterested in any of his plans. An intelligence-boosted housecat made several insulting remarks about Drew's mother and promptly left the lair. And a baby naked mole rat, though it could perform menial tasks, was only able to say one or two words at a time and could only gibber and chatter the rest of the time. Communication was impossible. The yak had long ago abandoned the lair (later it would turn up in a monastery in Tibet teaching a unique brand of philosophy to the monks there) and Drew simply returned the baby naked mole rat to the Middleton Smarty-Mart for a refund. Before he could conduct any more experiments, Global Justice tracked him down and hauled him away.

Wade was keenly interested in studying Rufus, and the effects the intelligence ray had on him, and this summer seemed like the perfect opportunity.

"Bonnie Rockwaller."

_A smattering of applause._

Poor Bonnie, her mother cheered like a banshee while her older sisters simply sat with their arms folded, embarrassed.

Kim was going to work part-time at her father's lab for the summer. Four days a week, and she promised Ron he could have the other three. Ron thought about getting a job, too, but didn't see the point. When he turned eighteen, Ron's dad showed him the contents of the trust fund. There were enough zeroes on the end of the number to choke a philosophizing yak. Ron was pretty much set for life. He couldn't wait until he turned twenty-one so he could set his parents up. He offered to get them a huge house, cars, the whole works. They insisted they didn't want any of it. Well, Ron's Dad _did_ want to join the country club, but couldn't afford it. Ron was only too happy to oblige. When the money did come to him, he intended to pay off his parent's debts and make sure they'd get a comfortable income.

"Ronald Stoppable."

_Cheering._

Ron crossed the stage and accepted his diploma from Mr. Barkin.

"Nice work, Stoppable," Barkin said.

"Thanks Mr. B!", Ron turned and waved to his parents, the cheering Possible family and then Kim who was waving a pom-pom and making a mild spectacle of herself. When she found out he'd be graduating with the class, she couldn't hide how proud she was of him. Monique, sitting next to Kim, also waved a self-conscious pom-pom.

The celebration was at the Possible house that night. Games, food, and plenty of friends. Of course, everyone in their class had their own celebrations, but many stopped by to say hello. Ron and Felix played video games with the twins most of the evening.

Late in the evening, the Kimunicator beeped.

"How goes the party?" Wade asked.

"Great", Kim told him, "But winding down. What the sitch?"

"Something's been bugging me since that day Ron lost his treehouse." Wade informed her.

"Ah, the dearly departed treehouse," Ron said in a sad voice, "So many memories… so muchas smooches!"

Kim nudged him playfully, "What's the problem?"

"Well, how exactly did Goliath Kilgore know you were there? I mean, specifically, how did he know you were in the treehouse that afternoon?" Wade asked.

Kim and Ron looked at each other.

"Hey, yeah!" Ron exclaimed, "He just walked right up and put the smack down on my treehouse without asking if anyone was home! What up with that?"

"Remember how I was able to pinpoint Ron's location while he was wearing the Molecular Enhancer?" Wade asked.

"Yeah," Kim said, waiting.

"I just performed the same scan on your house. Ron's still showing residual traces of the Molecular Enhancer's effects. I noticed it while I was performing some initial scans on Rufus today."

"Hey, how is the little guy? Is he there? Does he miss me?" Ron asked, crowding his face near the Kimunicator.

Wade said nothing. Rufus scampered into the picture, gibbering and chattering.

"Hey, little buddy! How's life at Wade's house?" Ron almost sounded like he was gibbering himself.

"Let's put the reunion on hold for a few minutes," Kim suggested, "So, Wade, you're saying it's possible to detect anyone who's ever worn a Molecular Enhancer?"

"Precisely!" Wade confirmed, "Ron's traces are almost gone, but it is still possible to detect them with a sophisticated enough scan. The thing is, only one person knows you ever wore the Enhancer. And that person also has the capabilities to scan for residual Enhancer traces."

Kim put two and two together, "Hench."

"Right" Wade said.

"Wait a minute….what? Hench called us when Kilgore broke into his lab a couple of months ago… he's playing us and Kilgore against each other?" Ron was incredulous.

"When you have two enemies, the best way to deal with them is to get them to fight each other." Kim concluded.

"Pretty much what I was thinking," Wade agreed.

"OK, Wade, hook us up with a ride to Hench's offices tomorrow. I think we'll pay him a friendly visit." Kim said.

"You got it." Wade acknowledged.

Ron grabbed the Kimunicator, "Put Rufus back on!"

* * *

It was slow going. With Jim's help, Kim was searching the web for any mention of Deathray, but there was precious little. At one point, Jim was sure he'd found a hidden URL that mentioned Deathray, but when he logged in, all he got was a mess of disjointed programming. Either a secret code was needed to decipher it, or someone had infected it with a virus. Kim was trying to set up some sort of base in her room at her parents' house. Yesterday she'd moved all her things out of her apartment and decided to stay here until the wedding.

That morning she'd asked Raymond to postpone the wedding by a week. If she couldn't find Deathray by then, she'd let her brothers and the authorities handle it. She couldn't spend the rest of her life avenging Ron Stoppable. Raymond was patiently waiting to begin their lives together, and to make him wait any longer would be unfair.

One week.

The twins continued to set up various equipment in Kim's room. When Tim powered up a satellite link-up and ran a test scan, he discovered an interesting signal coming from downtown Middleton and alerted his sister..

"I'll check it out", she said, "You guys finish up here." Then, realizing she'd just issued an order, added, "please."

Kim slipped into her battlesuit and headed out.

* * *

"Anything?" Ronin asked.

"No", Wade replied, "You do realize this is going to take awhile."

"Yeah, I know. I'm just getting impatient. Sorry."

Ronin was perched at the edge of the roof of the Middleton Bank Tower. It wasn't want you'd call a world class skyscraper, but it was the highest vantage point in the city. He liked to come up here sometimes to clear his head. Sometimes it made him feel as though he was watching over Middleton. It was corny, but it appealed to the 'lone hero' in him.

"Well, well," Wade said, chuckling, "Would you look at this!"

"You found something?" Ronin asked.

"In a manner of speaking," Wade replied, "You're wearing your mask, right?

"Yeah, why?"

"Stand up and turn around," Wade advised him.

He did so. His breath caught in his throat.

There, standing with her arms folded and jade fire in her eyes, stood Kim Possible.

* * *

He double-checked his readings and climbed into the massive mechanized suit. The low flying aircraft that had just stopped briefly at the roof of the Middleton Bank Tower _had_ to be the same one that had stopped outside his lair the night he killed Ron Stoppable.

This ninja, this _Ronin_, was a variable he didn't like having in the equation. If he could just eliminate Ronin, then he could execute his plans without interference. Kim Possible, he had decided, was no threat to his intentions. She would be taken care of in ways better suited to her than death.

He strapped himself in, closed the hatch, and powered up.

* * *

"You're the guy they call Ronin. I want all the information you have regarding Lord Deathray", Kim demanded.

Ronin stared at her with a blank expression in his eyes. She was in her white battlesuit with the blue trim. Over the years her hair had become a deep auburn. It was shoulder-length and waving in the breeze. The emerald fury in her eyes only served to greatly enhance her beauty.

Emotional wounds Ronin thought had healed in the last six years were suddenly ripped wide open.

She stood there looking at him expectantly.

Ronin struggled for something to say, "Have…have I done something wrong?"

Unheard by Kim, Wade offered up an answer to Ronin's question, "You faked your death, hurt the ones you love the most, and now your life has become a hollow lie."

"That remains to be seen," She answered, "Tell me what you know about Deathray!"

"I don't know anyth-"

He was cut off when Kim's fist slammed into his face. He was sent sprawling. Wade erupted into laughter.

"Something funny?" Ronin muttered.

"You just got jacked by Kim Possible." Wade said through fits of laughter, "What's _not_ funny?"

"Wrong", Kim said striding over to him. She stood with a foot on either side of him, crouched and grabbed his tunic by the neck, "I heard Deathray say he knew who you were. It's probably a good bet you know who he is."

"In case you're wondering", Wade said in his ear, "I'm not hooked up to the interface. I am _not_ going to help you fight her."

His nose throbbing, Ronin thought frantically about what to do next. He didn't want to fight her either. Looking up into those green eyes was like taking a kick to the stomach. There was anger in them, yes, but there was more. He could see pain and grief. Pain and grief that he had caused.

"I am sorry," he said hoping she couldn't recognize his voice, "I am unable to help you."

Before she could reply, he grabbed both her lower legs, brought his legs up and pushed her over forward. It was her turn to sprawl, and it made him wince to see it.

They both scrambled to their feet and squared off. Circling slowly, they faced each other, ready for combat.

"Maybe if you tell her you're Ron Stoppable, she'll stop kicking your butt!" Wade was a big helper today.

Kim lunged, he stepped aside, she threw out an arm and clothes-lined him, taking him down again.

Ronin regained his feet. _OK_, he thought, _I better play defense._

Kim came at him again, her face a mask of pure anger and determination. He stood his ground, blocking her incoming fists. He let Kim attack him again and again, and each time he defended himself, never throwing a punch or even going on the offensive. She kicked, he blocked. She swung, he ducked. Sometimes she managed to land a blow, but he took it in stride. Kim would leap into the air with a flying kick, he'd block it and then back off a few steps. Back and forth across the rooftop they fought. Ronin could tell she was beginning to tire.

"Incoming!" Wade suddenly shouted in his ear.

Ronin's suit glowed bright crimson as he lunged at Kim. Grabbing her, he leaped and rolled as an explosion erupted behind them.

"Are you hurt?" He asked her.

She pushed him away with a grunt and said nothing. Above them, a roar, as a massive machine swooped over head and settled on the roof with a huge thud. Ronin pulled the Blade from his back, Kim readied her grappler and quickly checked her other tools.

Facing the monstrous machine, Ronin and Kim Possible stood, back to back, and prepared to battle Lord Deathray.


	8. Chapter 7

Shout outs to: Jezriana 2.0, LKillingsworth, Jessica Ann (aka Widow Shark), Classic Cowboy, JPMod, aimtbj, SestrenNK, CptnShort, and Mithlond88.

All bets are now closed as to Deathray's true identity:

* * *

Chapter 7

This didn't look good.

This just did not look good.

And he wasn't the only one who thought so.

"This doesn't look good", Wade said in his ear.

He could hear Kim behind him, trying to catch her breath. They 'd spent the past twenty minutes fighting. She was out of shape, and he had taken a pretty fair beating. The nose still throbbed, having met Kim's fist at high velocity not half an hour ago. Right now neither of them was in any condition to take on a villain in a giant mechanical suit.

Behind all this, of course, were the raw emotions coursing through Ronin's mind. Kim had hit him, and then they fought. But she didn't know it was him. At least, she didn't know who it really was under the ninja's mask. And she looked so angry, and hurt, and beautiful, and a little afraid… and all this he had to push aside because right now their lives were in danger.

Deathray stood there, making no move, making no noise. He seemed to be regarding them both but it was hard to tell, since the mechanized suit had no eyes to speak of. The front of the suit was graced with a reflective sort of windshield that looked like the canopy of a jet fighter. They couldn't see through it, and thus couldn't see who was inside. Five seconds had passed since Deathray landed. He hadn't moved since.

Ten seconds.

Things seemed to be turning into a standoff.

"I scanned Deathray with everything I can think of. All I can tell you is that it's your basic mechanized battlesuit with various focused-beam weapons. There's a heat signature inside that looks human, which means there is definitely someone in there." Wade told him.

There was no breeze now, the air seemed to grow hot with the mounting tension.

Twenty seconds, something had to be done.

"What's he waiting for?" He heard Kim mutter under her breath.

* * *

"What's he waiting for?" Kim muttered under her breath.

Hench had ordered a bunch of his men to surround her and Ron, but hadn't given the order to attack.

"Well, sheriff," Ron said in his best Texan accent, "Looks like we got ourselves an old fashioned standoff. Come on, who wants a jalapeno-flavored booty whoopin?"

"You really miss Bueno Nacho, don't you?" Kim asked sympathetically

"Is it that obvious?"

"Get them," Hench ordered.

Kim leaped and dropped the goon closest to her, then vaulted off him to the next, "It's nothing to be ashamed of…"

Flying kick. Guard went down. Moved on to the next bad guy.

"…I miss it too. Have you heard when the Middleton Bueno Nacho is supposed to open again?"

"The corporate website says it's closed for another month," Ron said dejectedly.

Kim knocked two heads together and sprang into a combat-ready stance as three others moved in on her.

"Tell you what, sweetie," she offered, dropping one guard and taking on the next, "I promise I will take you there opening night…"

Roundhouse kick, somersault, next guy.

"…and you can stuff yourself full of Nacos." Redirected momentum of a charging bad guy straight into a wall, "My treat, how's that sound?"

"Like heaven", he said dreamily, "But you should let me treat. I mean you got to save your money for college and stuff."

Two more charged, she jumped into the air, and they crashed into each other.

"Ron, sometimes a girl wants to give her boyfriend something he really wants, " she explained, rapid-punching yet another guard into submission, "I can't do that if you pay. I mean, that _is_ something you'd like, right?"

"Are you kidding? You and Bueno Nacho are my two favorite things on earth… I mean…not that you're a thing, I know you're a person, I just meant that-"

"I know what you meant," she assured him. She had come to a halt nearby and noticed three guards laying in a heap at his feet.

"Well, look at you, superhero!" she exclaimed.

He looked a little sheepish, "Well, you gotta figure after dropping a sumo-ninja, getting exposed to mystical monkey power and attending ninja school," he clamped a hand to his mouth, "Woops, forget I said that last one. Anyway, you gotta figure I was due sooner or later."

"You certainly seem more confident these days," she said sidling up to him.

"I noticed that," he agreed, "I think you're rubbing off on me."

"After all this time together? Seems like kind of a late bloom."

"Well…you know…", he began to turn red, "Power of love and all that."

"Awwwww," she said, melting, "That is so sweet!" She looked into his eyes, and leaned in to kiss him.

"Uh…KP?"

"Yes?" She said dreamily.

"I think the mission's still on," he whispered urgently.

"The…what?" suddenly she remembered herself, "Oh, right! The mission!" she spun around, "Give it up, Drakken!"

"Hench", Ron whispered behind her.

"Give it up, Hench!"

_OK, _she thought, _that was a Ron moment. We seem to be rubbing off on each other._

"I'm sure I have no idea what you're talking about" Hench insisted.

"Yeah…whatever, buddy," Ron argued, "We know you told Kilgore where he could put the hurt on us."

"And we want to know why," Kim added.

"Honestly, the teenage imagination is fraught with conspiracy theories. Kilgore hates me, or hadn't you heard?" Hench said condescendingly.

Kim looked around at the goons, some of whom were beginning to regain consciousness.

"Molecular enhancers?" She asked.

"What of it?" Hench asked in return.

Kim took out the Kimunicator.

"Wade, I got a bunch of bad guys all wearing Molecular Enhancers."

"Hold the Kimunicator at arm's length", he told her.

She did, and it began to glow brightly. She leaped to the nearest guard and touched him with the device. The sounds of pops and fizzles accompanied what appeared to be a rapidly deflating guard. When the guard reached his normal size, it became obvious the Molecular Enhancer was fused and inoperable.

"No!" Hench cried, "Those are extremely expensive! To say nothing of the guard's pension."

"Your goons have benefits?" Ron asked.

"It's a very powerful union," Hench informed him.

"Dental?"

"Everything except braces."

"Not bad!"

"Getting back to the subject at hand," Kim said rolling her eyes, "You were just about to reveal why you sent Kilgore after us."

"I didn't," Hench insisted, "No, really. I got an e-mail from a very large association promising me a ton of business if I got you out of the way."

"What association?" Kim demanded.

"Something called the World Organization of Evil," Hench stated

"Whoa!" Ron exclaimed.

"No, that's WOE," Hench corrected him

"What?"

"Not 'what', WOE."

"That's what I said! Whoa!"

"It's not Whoa! It's WOE! You said Whoa!"

"Right, Whoa!"

"RON!", Kim roared.

"Whoa!" Ron and Hench exclaimed simultaneously.

"Jinx! You owe me a soda!" Ron declared triumphantly.

"There's a machine in the lobby", Hench informed him.

"Shut it! Both of you!" Kim ordered.

Silence.

"All right then, tell me, what's whoa- aargh! What is W.O.E.?" Kim said, beginning to boil over.

"It's whoa," Ron suggested helpfully.

"Firmly established, Ron!" she snapped at him

"I don't know who they are," Hench explained, "They made a huge order for Molecular Enhancers and then put it on hold. When I asked 'why' they said I was to get rid of Kim Possible before they would proceed any further."

"What about Ron Stoppable?" Ron demanded.

"Feeling left out?" Kim asked.

"A little," Ron answered, "No one ever remembers the sidekick."

"I promise I won't forget him!", Kim said warmly.

"Anyway," Hench continued, giving them an odd look, "They wanted me to get rid of you."

"So you sent Kilgore after us." Ron concluded.

"I simply sent him an anonymous text message with the address of the treehouse. What he did with that information is not my responsibility." Hench said defensively.

"Oh," Kim said innocently, "So if I have my techno-guy send a virus into your computer system, what that virus does is not my responsibility."

"Meh", Hench said unthreatened, "I have the latest virus protection."

"But do you have surge protection?" Kim asked. She pushed a button on the Kimunicator, "Do it, Wade."

"On it," Wade acknowledged, "I've re-routed electrical power from the surrounding area into Hench's labs and offices, it'll be there in 3…2…1."

Right on cue, every computer terminal, workstation and piece of electronic equipment began to pop and sizzle. Showers of sparks erupted everywhere. Ron yelped and covered his head. The lights overloaded and went out. After roughly sixty seconds, everything quieted down.

"My work!" Hench complained, "All my records, all the research on the Molecular Enhancer…"

"Fried like a chicken in Kentucky!" Ron answered for him.

"You are so shut down", Kim declared triumphantly. "Come on, Ron, you wanna see a movie tonight?"

"Ooh!", Ron got excited, "Can we see 'Space Conflict'?"

"That old movie? What's it doing back in theaters?"

They began to walk away, leaving John Hench to stand miserably in the sad remains of his company.

"The director re-did the special effects and added three minutes of new footage!" Ron said brightly.

* * *

Thirty seconds passed.

Kim and Ronin were still in a semi-crouch, ready for anything, yet Deathray just stood there facing them.

"I have examined the machine and confirmed there is someone inside," She heard the ninja say.

"What is he waiting for?" Kim asked him quietly.

"I do not have an answer for that," Ronin said, "But now you know everything I know about Lord Deathray."

Kim felt a pang of regret. She was so eager to find Deathray, and so sure this Ronin person could tell her something. Quickly recalling their fight, she realized the ninja had not thrown a single punch. He blocked as best he could, but she guessed she had hurt him with the few punches and kicks she managed to land, especially that surprise blow to his face. Another pang of regret. Whoever he was, Ronin was probably trying to bring Deathray to justice. Didn't Jim say he'd saved the twins' lives on more than one occasion? After all, he'd saved her life on the roof of the school that night.

_First day back on the job,_ Kim thought to herself, _and you've already beaten up an innocent stranger. Nice going._

Her back began to ache. She hadn't fought anyone in at least five years. And her bout with Ronin had taken its toll. She wasn't sure what she would have done if she were up here alone. She certainly couldn't take Deathray by herself, not in the condition she was currently in. It suddenly occurred to her that Ronin might be the most important person in the world to her right now. He was the only link to Deathray, and clearly he and Deathray were not friends.

Abruptly she straightened up and walked a few paces toward the machine.

"What do you want with me?" She demanded.

Deathray finally spoke, "I have no quarrel with you. This fight is between me and the one known as Ronin."

Kim was a bit confused, "Aren't you Lord Deathray?"

"Yes", he answered.

"But the other night at the school, you said you had come to annihilate both me and my-… and Ron Stoppable," She said, remembering Deathray also spoke with a slight accent that night but now seemed to be none.

"I… misspoke. My intentions were only for Ron Stoppable and the one behind you called Ronin," Deathray replied.

"Who is Ronin?" Kim demanded.

Silence. It stretched out.

"Who is Ronin? You said you knew who he was the other night. Who is he?"

She didn't need to wait for an answer to realize he actually didn't know anything about Ronin, it was all just bad guy bravado. Fake English accent, 'misspeaking'… And it occurred to her that Deathray had been beaten pretty easily that night at the high school. Sure, her brothers and Ronin knew what they were doing, but they were ready to continue the fight when he just flew off. Deathray, as far as villains went, was a rank amateur.

Knowing this, all she needed to figure out was who had Ron made enemies with recently, and what did it have to do with Ronin? Who would want to kill Ron and Ronin?

_Ron _she thought to herself.

_Ronin,_ she thought to herself.

_Ronin._

_Ron._

_Ron._

_In._

_Ron…_

* * *

"Ron!" she said angrily, "I think you'd better go!"

"Yeah," he said half-heartedly, "I guess I better."

They had left the cineplex twenty minutes ago and were in her room having a discussion on the merits of re-releasing old movies into theaters.

"I just don't see the point if all there is, is three minutes of new footage!" she stated.

"And all new special effects", Ron said sounding a little testy. "You just don't get it."

"I get it fine," she insisted, "It's all about making a quick buck."

"Excuse me?" Ron said indignantly, "It's a completely different movie with the three minutes of new stuff. Now we know that the Space Wizard is the father of the Whiny Stellar Teen! That's totally different from the original version!"

"You could have figured that out without the extra footage! It's just three minutes of people celebrating the defeat of the Galactic Baron! It's nothing!" Kim said, an edge in her voice.

"It's not nothing!" Ron insisted, "You just don't get it because you're a girl. Girls don't get this stuff."

It had actually gotten out of Ron's mouth before he had a chance to stop it. He watched her turn white and then a deep red.

"Ron! I think you'd better go!"

"Yeah, I guess I better."

Ron trudged home depressed and angry at himself. Well, that was that. The relationship lasted a whole – what was it, maybe two months? Still it was the longest relationship he'd had with a girlfriend.

But then something occurred to Ron that brought a sick feeling to his stomach. Not only was their relationship over, but this probably meant their friendship was over as well.

_Nice going, Stoppable_ he berated himself _You gotta be the biggest idiot on the planet._

No more sidekick either. She'd probably go get Monique to back her up on missions from now on.

A tear escaped his eye.

All because of his big mouth!

He walked home sadder than he could remember, and cried himself to sleep.

* * *

"You know, if you elimated the buffoon, eventually Kimmie would forget all about him," Shego said casually. Her head was on his chest, she played absently with his chest hair., "Then she'd be completely yours."

"If you want to take him out, be my guest", Ray responded just as casually.

"Well, I wasn't thinking about me. Frankly, he can live his life until it ends naturally for all I care. It's just that you're constantly complaining about him, and you've never even met him," she said pointedly.

It hadn't occurred to him before. But when she put it like that…

Wow.

Rage began to burn within him. Ron Stoppable had wormed his way into his relationship with Shego! And this was someone Kim hadn't seen for six years! Ray didn't even know Ron and he hated him. Suddenly, Stoppable's death began to sound like a viable option.

"But I can't do that", he snapped, "People go to jail for that kind of thing, you know."

"They sure do", she agreed turning to look at him with eyes as green as poison, "But that doesn't mean Ray Beam has to do it."

Ray stared at her, not comprehending.

"Superheroes aren't the only ones with secret identities", she purred.

A slow smile spread across his face. It was perfect. Kim and Ron had fought all kinds of villains in their day, it would make sense if some villain terminated Ron Stoppable in an act of vengeance. So out comes Mr. Bad Guy, kills Ron Stoppable, Kim cries for a couple of days, and then she'd be all his. No one would ever have to know. And he wouldn't have to hear Kim say another word… well, she'd probably talk about him, but eventually he would fade into the past.

"Yeah", he said, smiling darkly at her, "That's perfect."

And thus Lord Deathray was born.

It had gone pretty well. He constructed the suit out of stuff at her father's lab. Shego found them a decent lair in the warehouse district. Abandoned, of course, but serviceable. Besides, it was only temporary. It took six months to build the suit, and Shego helped him learn the basics of combat. Rough at first, but things began to smooth out. Shego proved to be an enthusiastic helper, even coming up with the perfect opportunity to strike at Stoppable. At the high school reunion there would be plenty of witnesses to see Lord Deathray kill Ron Stoppable.

In a bit of inspired brilliance, Ray developed a remote control device that looked like a cell phone. He could pilot the suit, fire the weapons, all by remote. If need be, he could find an opportunity to climb in and do battle with Stoppable, not that it would prove any great feat. Then, all he needed was an opportunity to climb back out of the suit without anyone seeing, fly it away, and come to Kim's rescue as she absorbed the shock of losing Ron.

There had been a complication, though.

Ronin.

Whoever he was, he must have seen Ray climb into the machine while it was in the field behind the school.

"If you wish to fight, climb out of that suit and face me", the ninja had challenged.

Ray was reaching for the latch. He could take this guy. But then Shego's voice came over the communicator.

"Ray, honey, if you get out of the suit, people will see you."

"But he knows someone's in here" Ray protested, "He probably saw me climb in."

"Doy!" Shego admonished him, "It's a huge, mechanical battlesuit. It's not hard to guess someone's inside. He's trying to get you to expose yourself."

"Do not taunt me." He shouted into the microphone, "I know who you are, samurai. I will not climb out of my suit unless you climb out of yours,"

"Yeah, there you go", Shego said in mock approval.

So he'd fought his battle and was almost conquered. No one saw him climb out of the suit when it crashed to the floor. It all went off without a hitch.

Well, for the most part, anyway. He couldn't get that ninja out of his mind. But there was something else, something that ate at him in the darkest places of his soul.

He liked being a villain.

OK, so the English accent was a stupid idea. And maybe it would be wise to just let things rest. Then again, he couldn't help thinking about how much he enjoyed the villainy. All those screams of terror at the school. Kim's pathetic misery. The fear, the intimidation, the forced respect. Yeah, he liked this.

So, why not one more outing as Deathray? Kill Ronin and everything would be wrapped up nice and neat. No mysterious ninjas who might find out his secret. No witnesses, no loose ends.

But instead of no loose ends, he arrived to find an extra one. He'd picked up the same signal of the aircraft that had been at the warehouse the night of the reunion. So he set out to eliminate the ninja.

He was startled to find his fiancé engaged in personal combat with Ronin. What was this about? When she'd asked for the wedding to be postponed, he assumed it was so she could grieve, and get some closure. She hadn't mentioned anything about coming out of retirement.. Maybe she thought Ronin was Stoppable's killer?

Then they turned to face him, squaring off like some superhero team. Ray began to hate this ninja. Deep down, he realized he probably hated Kim Possible as well. Why couldn't she just do what she was told? Grieve for Ron and then become his woman. That was all she had to do. But no, here she was, apparently trying to avenge Stoppable's death?

"What are you doing?" Shego demanded. "You've been standing there forever!"

"My fiancé is here", he protested.

"I can see that", Shego said placidly.

"What do you want with me?", he heard Kim's voice from outside.

"I have no quarrel with you" he said slowly, "This fight is between me and the one called Ronin."

"Aren't you Lord Deathray?"

"Yes", he answered, confused.

"But the other night at the school, you said you had come to annihilate both me and my-… and Ron Stoppable."

Woops, how was he going to talk his way out of this? "I… misspoke. My intentions were only for Ron Stoppable and the one behind you called Ronin,"

"Who is Ronin?" Kim demanded.

"Shego what do I do?" He said, turning off the microphone.

"Fight", Shego replied.

"What!"

"Think about it, Ray. Either she wins, and you're dead. Or you win, and she dies, in which case no one but you will have ever gotten to posses her." Shego paused to let it sink in, "But if you fight her and neither of you win…you get to knock Kim Possible around and she has no idea it's you. She could spend the rest of her life hunting Lord Deathray. You smack her around during the day as her arch foe, and welcome her home at night as the loving husband."

Shego may not have been wearing a battlesuit, but she knew how to push buttons.

"Besides," Shego cooed, "If you do beat her, you get to come home to me. And no one will ever know Ray Beam killed his fiancé."

Suddenly, Kim's voice again.

"Who is Ronin? You said you knew who he was the other night. Who is he?"

Ray looked down at her from his perch inside the battlesuit. She was proud, defiant, disrespectful… everything she had no right to be.

_Smack her around during the day,_ Ray thought, slipping over to the dark side, _play the loving husband at night._

He raised his weapon and fired.

* * *

Ron slept until noon. He couldn't bring himself to get out of bed. When he finally did drag his sorry self downstairs, wearing only his boxers, his hair a frightening mess, he was surprised to find Kim sitting at the kitchen table, reading a magazine.

"Good afternoon!' she said brightly.

Ron just stared at her with sleepy eyes.

"I made you some breakfast", she said, getting up, "Well, I didn't make it. I picked up some doughnuts on the way over."

She went to the refrigerator and took out a pink pastry box and a carton of milk.

"Did you come for your stuff?", Ron asked in a scratchy voice.

"What stuff?" she inquired.

"Just some stuff you've left here over the years, "he explained, "I got it in a box upstairs.

"Ron, what do you…OK, you should really put on some pants before we continue this conversation."

Ron was suddenly self-conscious. He turned and trudged back upstairs.

"Where's my parents?" he called over his shoulder.

"Country club!", she called up after him.

Five minutes later, Ron was dressed, his hair having had a chance meeting with a comb.

"Let's talk about last night," she said taking a chair opposite him.

"I thought we broke up last night," Ron said listlessly.

"Ron", she said, her voice taking on a nurturing tone, "We had a fight. It happens to all couples."

"Zita and I never fought," he countered.

"Ron, you and Zita went out for, like, twenty-two minutes."

"What's your point?"

"My point is," she said patiently, "That you don't just break up with someone because you have a fight. When two people love each other", and here they both flushed a little. Everything still felt new, "They work through their conflicts. If they're good at it, they usually come out stronger on the other side of the argument."

"Hmm", Ron said through a mouth full of doughnut, "That makes sense. Did you read this in your magazine?"

"Talked to my mom this morning", she said a little sheepishly, "I kinda thought we broke up, too. She helped me realize that this would be a really stupid thing to split over."

"Wow. Remind me to send your mom some flowers," he said gratefully.

"You've never sent _me_ flowers", she said indignantly.

"Remind me to send you flowers," he said quickly, "And then your mom."

"By the way", he continued haltingly, "I'm sorry about what I said last night. It really was stupid."

"No argument there," she said grinning, "I guess I don't get the whole 'three minutes of new footage' thing, but that doesn't mean it's because I'm a girl."

"You're right," he agreed.

They sat in silence for a moment.

"Hey," he said brightening, "Remember how you came up with those rules about how we act on missions?"

She nodded.

"Maybe we should do the same thing about arguments."

"Rules during an argument?" She asked, a little confused.

"Well, yeah!" he said, thinking," Like, say rule number one is, however bad we fight, that doesn't mean it's a break-up."

"OK", she said, warming to the idea, "And if we do break up, it should be during a calm and rational conversation, like this."

"Right, exactly," Ron agreed "What we got is too good to just throw away in a moment of anger."

"Yes," she said, getting up. She came over and sat in his lap, putting her arms around his neck.

"And there should be some other stuff," he continued, "Like never say anything meant to intentionally hurt the other person."

"Or calling names, I've always thought that was a stupid thing to do in an argument", she put in.

They chattered on excitedly, feeling like adults having a grown-up conversation about something important.

"Look," Ron said at one point, "Not that I ever intend to do this, but we should have some kind of signal if one of us decides to end this relationship."

"Like 'We need to talk'?" She said looking at him seriously.

"That'll work," he agreed.

"What if we just need to talk?", she asked.

"Then use any number of the other phrases available," he answered, "Like 'I'd like to talk to you', or 'How about we chat', something like that. If one of us says 'we need to talk', that'll be the break-up conversation signal. Besides, it's what they always say on those TV shows."

"OK," she agreed. She kissed him deeply, not liking the talk about breaking up, but realizing it probably was necessary to communicate, "I can do that."

"Well, sure", he acknowledged, "But can you do this?"

He stuffed three doughnuts into his mouth at once.

* * *

Ronin dove out of the way of the beam. It cut through the air inches from his face.

"That was a Disintegrator Ray," Wade informed him, "This guy isn't messing around."

If the ray had been aimed at Kim, she would have been vaporized. Ronin was only saved by the use of the interface. He tumbled out of the way and regained his feet. Deathray was moving now.

Kim fired her grappler, latching it onto Deathray's left shoulder plate. She swung herself up. A massive arm came up and swatted her away like an insect. She hit the roof hard.

Deathray stomped toward the crouched and waiting ninja, firing as he came. Ronin produced a shield from the Lotus Blade and held it up. Though the Blade did not disintegrate, the force of the ray drove Ronin backward, skidding along the top of the roof as he fought to maintain his footing.

Kim struggled to her feet and ran at the monstrous machine whose back was now to her. She did several handsprings, vaulted into the air, somersaulted twice and landed with a grunt on Deathray's back. Clearly she was in pain.

Meanwhile Deathray fired at the shield, continuing to advance on Ronin. At the last second, he ceased his fire and swung a massive leg at his opponent. Suit glowing, the ninja managed to dodge the kick. He tumbled off the edge of the roof and just barely caught himself before falling.

"Your blood/oxygen level is dropping. You're fatigued," Wade announced, clearly worried.

"Can you tell me something I don't know?" Ronin asked, breathing hard. He'd been up all night at the weapons warehouse, fighting with Kim , and now this. He was surprised fatigue hadn't set in earlier.

"Unfortunately, yes," Wade said, "If I continue to use the interface in your condition, the suit will damage your muscle tissue."

"Oh, that _is_ good news," Ronin replied, swinging himself with some effort up on to the roof.

Deathray had turned his attention to the person on his back. She was trying to pry open the latch.

Kim managed to duck several swings, and two attempts to remove her by disintegrator, but the latch would not budge. She couldn't stay up there all day. Having retrieved her grappler, she sprang off the machine, and did handsprings across the roof, avoiding laser fire the entire way. She took shelter behind the gigantic "M" of the Middleton Bank sign. Each of the letters stood about fifteen feet high and probably weighed a ton each.

Kim had an idea.

Retrieving her laser lipstick, she began cutting the anchor bolts of the giant 'M'. This took about thirty seconds to complete, leaving one anchor bolt uncut. In the meantime, Ronin had Deathray occupied some fifty feet from her position. When she was ready, she signaled Ronin.

He didn't understand what her plan was, but could tell what she was trying to communicate.

_Get Deathray to come over here._

Ronin leaped straight up the face of Deathray and vaulted over the top before the machine could react. Deathray turned in pursuit, laying down a swath of disintegrator fire that left gaping holes in the roof.

Ronin retreated into the shadow of the 'M'. In the meantime, Kim had latched the hair dryer end of her grappler to the huge letter and ran straight at Deathray with the hook-end of the cable. Ronin surmised her plan and began toppling the 'M' over the edge of the roof. The weight of the huge letter tore up the final anchor bolt, and it plummeted over the side. Kim dove and rolled, just barely getting the hook into an anchor point on Deathray's leg. The cable went taught, and Deathray was yanked off his feet, sliding toward the edge of the roof. He swung out a massive arm and broad-sided Kim like a bat hitting a ball. She sailed through the air and out over the street thirty stories below. Deathray was pulled over the side.

Kim was falling face first toward the street some three hundred feet down. She twisted in mid-air, knowing what she would see above her. Like a jet-black arrow, Ronin was fifteen feet away and gaining. Kim spread her arms and legs in an attempt to slow her velocity. Ronin hurled the claw and it latched on to her ankle. He pulled himself to her, took her in his arms and removed the claw. Barely twenty feet above the street, he latched the claw to a protruding flagpole. Kim grabbed the chain so Ronin wouldn't have to bear her weight. The chain went tight, and they swung around the horizontal pole. Halfway through the arc, on the upswing, they let go, both of them somersaulting through the air in almost perfect synch, and caught the flagpole with their hands on the way down. They used the chain to lower themselves to the ground.

Deathray struggled to free himself from the weight he was attached to but couldn't. At the last second, he fired his thrusters and softened the landing a little. But only a little, he still came crashing to the street with a horrendous thud and lay still.

When Ronin and Kim got to the street, Deathray began to stir.

Ronin grabbed Kim's hand and pulled her into the adjoining alley. Deathray fired a blast that shattered windows and tore holes in the buildings immediately behind them. Ronin looked frantically for a place to hide. About ten feet in front of them was a refrigerator box, open on one side. The alley was dark, it might just work.

"Can you cloak us both?" Ronin asked, out of breath.

"What?" Kim gasped.

"I might be able to extend the field around her," Wade answered, "But you're going to have to be in very close proximity to each other, and it'll use up twice the normal power."

"Do it," Ronin ordered.

"Do what?" Kim asked.

Around the corner behind them, the stomps of Deathray were approaching.

The box sat mostly in shadow. Ronin pushed her into it.

"Curl yourself up as tightly as you can," he ordered.

Kim obeyed. He put his arms as far around her as he could, and they huddled against the far edge, as much in shadow as they could get. Deathray was in the alley, but could not see them yet. Just before he got to the box, the cloak engaged and they vanished.

"Do not move" he whispered, "Do not make a sound."

Deathray, disintegrator at the ready, was searching all through the alley. He stopped inches from the box and stood perfectly still.

Kim clung tightly to her protector, her head against his chest. She could feel his heart racing. They both remained completely still. It took all of Ronin's willpower to keep from stirring. The way she clung to him, the smell of her hair, her breathing, the two of them locked in an almost lovers' embrace… it was overwhelming.

"Ten seconds of power left" Wade said quietly in his ear.

It wouldn't be enough. Any second they would reappear and Deathray would vaporize them both.

Suddenly there was a noise at the far end of the alley. Deathray fired his disintegrator and took off at a run. The Ninjet hovered near the street at the far end, turned, and rocketed into the sky. Deathray ignited his thrusters and took off after it.

In the wash of Deathray's jets, Kim and Ronin reappeared, but were unseen by their pursuer. The sound of Deathray quickly faded into the distance.

Ronin got out of the box, and then helped Kim out.

For a few seconds, they stood gazing at each other, then she spoke.

"Are you all right?" She asked.

Her concern cut him deep.

"I trust you are unharmed", he said in a choking voice.

She nodded.

"Thank you for saving my life again", she said softly.

He nodded in return, unable to say anything.

_Just rip off your mask,_ his mind screamed, _It's me; Ron! I love you and always have!_

"I can see why my brothers enjoy working with you," she offered.

"They are formidable warriors," He paused, "Like their sister."

"Take the mask off and tell her you love her!" Wade shouted in his ear.

"I should get going," she said after an uncomfortable silence. She moved close to him and looked into his eyes, "I know you're trying to bring Deathray to justice. But he killed my-… He killed Ron Stoppable. I hope you don't mind, but I'd like to think you're doing this for him", she paused and looked down, then looked back up at him shyly, "and for me."

Sirens were approaching. She turned and jogged down the alley, stopped to look back at him, and then disappeared around the corner.

"You got this comin'" Wade said. The right arm of the suit glowed. Involuntarily, his open right hand struck him in the forehead.

Ronin pushed the override button and cut off the interface, as well as communication. He stared down the alleyway for a long time, his mind a vortex of chaotic misery. Just before the authorities arrived, he slipped into the basement of the adjoining building, found his way into the sewers, and made his escape.

* * *

Kim, wasn't sure why she'd said that last part.

_And for me?_

It was like listening to someone else talk. Why on earth would she have said that to a total stranger? Back up on the roof, she had stumbled on something that seemed odd about Ron and Ronin, but now she couldn't remember what. Deathray's blaster had shattered her train of thought.

Maybe they were friends before Ron died. That would explain why Ronin sounded so choked up just now. That must be it. She decided she would ask Ronin what his relationship was with Ron the next time they met.

* * *

The next day, Ronin found Deathray's lair, and surrendered himself to the villain. 


	9. Chapter 8

OK, a few things.

First, if y'all will kindly indulge me I want to gush here for a moment and single someone out; I hope I don't embarrass her. But Jessica Ann (aka Widow Shark), the compliment you made in the "PS" section of your latest review absolutely made my week. I can't thank you enough.

Second: Special thanks to those who are kind enough to post regularly, such as the aforementioned Widow Shark, L Killingsworth, Jezriana 2.0, Sestren NK, Ari-griffin, aimtbj, mithlond88, KitsuneAjurei, Spooks-a-lot, cptnshort, futuregoddess, kimnronever, and JPMod, (forgive me if I left any out) you guys are starting to feel like my regulars, my friends, my sobs emotionally my _posse!_ All of your comments and compliments are greatly apreciated.

Thanks also to: Moonrae324, Cold-Chaos, horsefly.

And finally, a thanks to those who may be reading without necessarily posting a review, I deeply appreciate it.

Couple of notes: First, the ending of the last chapter seemed to tweak a couple of folks. I know teasers are gimmicky, but I didn't want to end the chapter with Kim deciding she'd ask Ronin about his relationship with Ron. I'm approaching this story with the flavor of the TV show 'Lost' (excellent show, check it out if you haven't) with all the flashbacks and the cliffhangers, and so forth. Sorry if it bugged anyone.

Second: this story will have an ending (plus a bonus epilogue). It has about four more chapters left to it. I decided to put the subplot about W.O.E. aside because it would have stretched out forever. I might just do a separate fic about it.

And finally: My apologies to any fans of humor and dialogue. This chapter, and the next are packed with exposition and dark themes. I tried to inject some levity into this chapter but it still comes off pretty heavy. I also think it turned out pretty well. At the end of this chapter you may find yourself asking "what was their final mission?" Answer: It's coming.

* * *

Chapter 8

Utter, utter misery.

Today was the day the man called Ronin – the man who used to be Ron Stoppable – would end his own life.

He'd thought he'd seen the depths of depression in the days after he ended his relationship with Kim. But now he sat, brooding, furious with himself, wondering how he could have been so stupid. Her life was in danger, again. All because of him, again.

This wasn't what the life of a tragically romantic lone hero was supposed to be like. Those guys didn't have their loved ones trying to avenge their fallacious deaths. They never took a punch in the face from the only person they've ever really loved.

They never held their soul mates close with the painful knowledge she didn't know who they were. They never had her head on their chest, smelled her hair, looked into her eyes, or listened to her voice of soft concern for their well being.

Because they weren't real. Imaginary figments didn't have to deal with painful pasts, didn't have to watch as the one they loved married someone else.

The funeral had been that afternoon, and like the idiot he was, he couldn't resist attending, at least from a distance. He found a perch in a tree, and watched everyone he loved in the world mourn his loss. Oh, the pain he had caused. The Drs. Possible, his parents, Kim, all were crying. Even Jim and Tim looked downtrodden. And for the first time, he got a good look at her fiancé.

There he was. Ray Beam. An arm around her in a gentle show of support and sympathy. It was maddening. He found himself wishing there was some fatal flaw about the man, so he could run down there, tear off the mask and shout, "He's no good for you Kim, come back to me!"

Only in the movies.

Truth was, Ray was probably perfect. Kim deserved no less. He wondered if she ever mentioned him to her hus-…fiancé. He's still her fiancé. Ronin didn't have to make any marital acknowledgments for at least another five days.

But something deep inside him had already decided he wouldn't be around that long. No faking it this time. The world was better off without Ron Stoppable, or Ronin for that matter. Both had made colossal failures of their lives. Both of them had put the one person they loved more than anyone else in danger, repeatedly.

Both of them had been desperately in love with Kim Possible.

And he knew that was the one thing he had that Ray didn't. Ray might be a good man, a wonderful husband, and a great father to her children some day. But he would never love Kim as much as Ron Stoppable did. Never.

Watching all this was sheer emotional torture. But in a thought of vicious self-loathing, he told himself he deserved it, and more. That's right, he'd sit there and watch the emotional suffering of everyone he ever loved because that's what he deserved. He was the cause of the suffering, after all.

Oh if only he had a time machine. If only there were some sort of magical, mystical

(_monkey_)

way of traveling back through time to fix his mistakes. Even if it was just a one-shot opportunity, he knew where he would go. Back to that afternoon. He'd go back and prevent himself from walking into that hospital room and making the biggest mistake of his life.

* * *

The waiting room in the Middleton Medical Center was quiet, almost as if everyone in it knew what was coming. _Impossible_, Ron told himself with bitter irony. That morning even he wasn't sure he should go through with this; walk into a hospital room and crush Kim Possible's heart, along with his own. And three days before the wedding no less. But he had to walk a fine line. Up until now, Kim was in no condition to get her heart broken, and waiting any more would put it right up against the wedding. The time was now. Again, he wasn't sure if this was the best way to go, but considering the alternatives… He concluded it was the alternatives he couldn't live with.

He looked across the waiting room table, stacked with old magazines and heavily used children's toys, to the twins on the other side. They were fidgeting, restless, wanting to get back home and make their plans. They were just thirteen, but were already talking about following in their sister's footsteps. He wanted to get up, walk over there and talk them out of it. Didn't they realize what kind of world it was? It was big, and mean, and nasty, and sometimes it wanted to kill you. Sometimes it did kill your loved ones. And if that happened, what did the world care? Who would shed a tear?

_No one, _he thought bitterly.

Ron looked up to see his parents emerge from the room. They all took visiting in shifts, with Ron getting the lion's share because he was her fiancé. The Drs. Possible were all smiles and sunshine. They were looking forward to gaining a son in the family. Well, a son-in-law at least. They pretty much considered him part of their family anyway. The fact that he would be legally related to them just seemed a logical conclusion. Almost a foregone one at that.

"She's all yours, Ronald!", Mr. Dr. Possible said cheerfully.

"Thanks," he muttered and got up to go in.

"What's wrong with him?" Dr. James Possible asked his wife.

"Probably just pre-marital jitters," she whispered back.

"Ah yes," Mr. Dr. Possible replied, "I remember those."

"You never told me…" They walked off chattering to each other.

Ron stopped at the door, trying to compose himself.

_Just be firm, _he ordered himself, then stepped through the door.

"Sweetheart!", Kim exclaimed, her face lighting up, "Oh, I'm so glad you're back. I don't think I could take one more minute of my mother and her ferocious wedding plans. The doctor says if I'm not out the day after tomorrow, maybe we can bring the minister in and have the ceremony here. What do you think of…"

She trailed off, noticing his face. They could practically read each other's minds these days. One look at him and she knew something was wrong.

"What is it?", she asked worriedly.

He stood there looking at her. Even in a hospital bed, with her hair messy, wearing that stupid gown with the open back – what was the point of those anyway? – she was breathtakingly beautiful. In their four year relationship, her beauty had only increased in his eyes.

He swallowed hard, trying to strengthen his resolve.

"We need to talk", he said quietly.

Kim Possible instantly turned pale.

* * *

That summer after high school graduation was sheer bliss. Thanks to a flexible boss, Kim didn't have a rigorous work schedule. She and Ron spent just about all their free time together. Warm days at the lake, or cool nights going to the movies together or sometimes double-dating with Monique and Brick, who were enjoying a summer fling. The one downer that summer was the fact that Bueno Nacho went bankrupt and never re-opened. It was discovered that Drakken had been illegally funneling investor funds to finance his Diablo-bots. When he went down, so did Bueno Nacho. Drakken was scheduled to do hard time in various maximum security facilities throughout the world, and it seemed to have a chilling effect on the rest of the villain community. Missions became less frequent than they were in high school.

They spent a few missions tangling with W.O.E., but since that does not play a major part of this story, perhaps I will save the telling of it for another time. As for the missions in general, Ron began to notice something of a vicious trend in the villains they fought. Once was a time when they could be counted on to spill their plans while leaving Kim and Ron in an easily escapable trap. But the villains were keeping their secrets to themselves these days, the traps were more elaborate and more difficult to escape from, and the bad guys themselves seemed to be getting more and more insidious. Violence came all too easily for some of them. After awhile, Ron actually began to get nostalgic for the likes of the Seniors or Motor Ed.

Suffice it to say that – but for missions - the world seemed to be a magical place wherever they went together. Kim accompanied the Stoppables on a two week return trip to Paris, and Ron went with the Possibles on a camping trip to Yosemite. Ron begged his dad for a chunk of the trust fund and bought Kim a car for her birthday. She was flabbergasted when he took her outside, blindfolded, and showed her the zippy little two-door sports car in the driveway. She protested mildly that she didn't deserve such an extravagant gift, or that he should save his money, and so forth. But deep down what she really thought was that she couldn't match his generosity. What would she get him for his birthday that could equal a car?

That evening, sitting in her new car at the Middleton Drive-In, she told him as much.

"Wait! What? Since when are we keeping score in this relationship?" Ron demanded.

"We're not," Kim protested.

"Sounds like _someone_ is," he said turning his nose up indignantly.

"Ron," she sounded annoyed.

"Kim", he also sounded annoyed.

"Ron, it's just that in my whole life I'm never going to be able to give you the-"

"I'm sorry, your whole what?" Ron interrupted.

"I'm just saying – if you'll let me finish – that in my whole life I'll never be able to give you something this extravagant.!", Kim finished, then gasped. She'd said it without even realizing it.

"I didn't realize you were going to give us that long," Ron observed.

"I…uh…it's just that…", she stammered.

He was enjoying this.

"Make you a deal", he looked at her with a sly grin, "You give me that, and I won't expect any extravagant gifts. Not my whole life."

"Give you what?" she asked

"Your whole life," he answered.

"Ron are you asking me to-", She began.

"No…no I'm not. That would be a little premature," He said firmly. "But you gotta admit, you said that pretty easily."

"I didn't even think twice about saying it," she admitted. She wasn't sure what to feel. Was Ron 'the one'? The answer seemed obvious, but then it was also kind of a depressing thought to think her whole life was already planned out for her.

She'd been silent for a moment.

"Tell me what you're thinking?" he asked.

She hesitated, not wanting to hurt him, but not wanting to hide anything from him either. Biting her lip with worry, she told him, hoping he wouldn't be insulted.

His response surprised her.

"Yeah", he said, musing, "That's why I said it felt a little premature. But let me tell you a couple of things. The first is: Syntho-drone."

"Huh?"

"Remember prom night? Remember Eric?", he asked.

"Yeah," she said, still confused.

"You thought he was the perfect guy, turned out he wasn't even a _real_ guy. If you're waiting for the perfect guy to come along, maybe you should go dig up the syntho-drone. Not to toot my own horn, but I don't think guys get more perfect than the Ronster," he said kicking back with mock bravado.

She giggled, "Maybe they don't. But I see your point about the 'perfect guy'. What was your other point?"

"Only this," he said turning serious, "Just because we may end up spending our lives together doesn't mean it's all planned out. There's a million things you can still do with your life, and the bonus is, you get to do them with your best friend!"

She pulled him to her, nuzzling him and kissing his neck, "You sure do have your moments, Ron Stoppable."

He leaned over toward her, "Yeah, they don't come very often but when th- ow…OW! Emergency brake! Why didn't I buy a car with bench seats?"

So she accepted his gift, and drove it to college that fall. She'd be staying in the campus dorms the first year, and then her parents agreed to talk about an apartment after that. Several of her classmates from Middleton attended GCU that semester. Monique was one of them, and she and Kim roomed together. Ron continued living at home with his parents, driving to his classes at Lowerton Community College every morning. He and Kim saw each other on average once a week, not including missions. Sometimes she would drive home for the weekend, or he would go see her.

Kim came to discover she actually preferred her relationship with Ron over dating college guys. Monique dated most of the offensive line during the fall, and then moved on to the basketball team in December. Kim didn't see the point. Sure, Monique seemed to be having fun, but her brief relationships were always so shallow and dead-endish. In a lot of ways, Monique seemed to be asserting her independence as a college student by perhaps dating guys that her father might not approve of. But since Kim (and Ron) had parents who allowed them to travel halfway around the globe at a moment's notice, she never felt any need to demonstrate her independence.

Kim's perceived aloofness drove the guys at her college nuts. Of course they'd heard of her, and she was hit on, a lot. Her disinterest in dating just made her that much more desirable. The worst part for a lot of guys was the fact that Kim was so nice when she turned them down. Rather than feeling rejected, guys would walk away feeling like they'd just had a pleasant conversation. It often took an hour or two to figure out they'd been refused. For Kim's part, the term "syntho-drone" would pop into her head whenever some guy seemed like an honest prospect for a relationship. After awhile, the propositions tapered off. Word got around she was dating the sidekick, and in an odd way, it seemed to make sense to everyone. Spend that much time with someone, save his life a few times, maybe he saves yours on occasion; dating seems like a logical convenience. All the women in her dorm thought it was romantic, but that was mostly because they had visions of vanquishing a foe on some exotic beach somewhere and then spending the rest of the time rolling around in the surf and making out.

Well, OK, so she and Ron had actually done that a couple of times but that was the exception to the rule.

Actually, Kim did have a few new men in her life, the way a lot of young men and women do when they get to college; men like Plato, Sartre, Balzac and Jung. And it wasn't just philosophy that intrigued her. She found her pre-med courses challenging and rewarding. There seemed to be a club for every interest on campus, and she tried a few of them. She decided cheerleading was something she'd grown out of, and so didn't try out for the team. Her schedule turned out to be very flexible with her mission requirements, and overall, she found college life suited her. After the newness of it wore off, she began to miss Ron more and more as that first year went on.

Ron worked hard to get his transcript to a level acceptable to GCU's standards. Naturally, Kim was the motivating factor. He wanted to be near her, and though he was glad to see her at least once a week, the long distance thing began to get old. Unlike Kim, Ron did stay with cheerleading. He seemed a natural as the Lowerton Lemur, and Rufus (who had returned from spending the summer with Wade) became something of a minor celebrity as the school's mini-mascot. On his occasional visits to see Kim, Ron began to make friends with a few of the people Kim had gotten to know.

Late that year, they had a series of run-ins with Monkey Fist, who had apparently graduated to gorilla warfare.

In the spring, Senor Senior Senior passed away. Ron and Kim attended the funeral in their mission gear as a show of respect for a formidable nemesis. At the service they got the shock of their lives when Junior introduced them to his fiancé; Bonnie Rockwaller.

As a joke the previous summer, Kim had forwarded an e-mail to Bonnie from Junior, expressing his undying love. Kim attached a note that described Junior as a "billionaire with his own private island and aspirations as a teen pop idol."

Bonnie couldn't hit 'reply' fast enough.

Spring came and went. Kim and Ron spent another blissful summer together in Middleton. Rufus went to spend another summer with Wade. Their relationship deepened, each seemingly becoming a part of the other. Ron became more assertive and helpful on the missions, while Kim found she would often make a wisecrack or momentarily lose her concentration at the wrong moments. You know how some people who have a pet for a number of years will eventually start to look like them? Or at least, they seem to? It was kind of like that. They argued, sometimes heatedly – once coming very close to breaking up - but always came out stronger on the other side.

In the late summer, just before the second year of college began, they brought down an obscure villain by the name of Cody Pendant. He was a moody fellow, prone to severe mood swings and erratic behavior. His plan was to take over the world using a jacked up version of Prozac. Drugged into a mind-numbed apathy, the citizens of the world would do his bidding or else: severe withdrawal symptoms. He was carted off to jail, but in a violent rage, he vowed revenge. They didn't take him seriously.

Time passed. The second year of college went by almost unremarkably. Professor Dementor spent the spring semester as guest lecturer for the Criminal Studies department at GCU. Kim audited his class. Seeing the smiling face of an arch foe in the third row vexed him greatly. She always raised her hand to answer one question or another and he always ignored her. Finally he couldn't take it.

"I should like it to be known in this class, that I HAVE A STANDING _POLICY TO NEVER_ **_CALL ON AN ARCH FOE!",_** he said, bellowing by the end of his statement.

Kim sheepishly put her hand down.

Summer again, the time seemed to pass more quickly. Rufus was with Wade. The Possible and Stoppable parents began to joke with each other about when a date might be set. After attending the wedding of Mr. and Mrs. Senor Senior Junior, Kim and Ron began to discuss it themselves, but mostly just in conversational tones, never really talking seriously about it.

Ron transferred to GCU in the fall, and got a house with Felix and two other guys. Ron gained some popularity for himself on campus as the new GCU Gopher, Rufus was, again, the mini-mascot. Kim and Monique had taken an apartment, and Monique limited herself to just the baseball team. It was more fun dating jocks in the off-season anyway.

Ron went into his third year still majoring in General Studies, which is a polite way of saying he had no idea what he wanted to do with his life. He loved his theater classes; drama, the study of film and television, creative writing classes. But he was having trouble settling on a career for himself. His parents didn't feel as though sidekick was a noble calling. Ron, however, was sure of one thing. Kim had a promising career in medicine ahead of her, and when she graduated the next year, she'd be applying to med school. That could be anywhere. As that third year went by, Ron began to see more and more that it made sense not to follow Kim off to med school as her boyfriend, but rather go with her as her husband.

* * *

In their four years together, Ron had never used the phrase. He'd stuck faithfully to their argument rules. So faithfully, in fact, that she'd dismissed the possibility that he'd ever utter those words.

"Can you at least tell me why?" She pleaded. She was sitting up in her hospital bed, Ron was in the visitors chair across from her. No one else was in the room.

"No, I'm sorry." He said quietly but firmly.

"But…why?", he saw in her eyes something he'd never seen before. Pain and confusion. He was expecting anger. This was much worse.

_Because if I tell you my reasons, you'll just talk me out of it, _he thought to himself.

She sat, staring at him, trying to absorb what he'd just told her.

"You've got to at least give me a reason. I think I deserve that much. Is it just jitters? We can postpone the wedding. Is it this mission we were just on? Would you rather I was out of the hospital before we get married? What? Please give me something!" She was still in shock, but his impassive demeanor told her he was serious. She looked as though her world were crashing down around her.

"It…I just…no. I'm sorry, but I can't." he stammered. He couldn't even look her in the eye. A small voice in the back of his mind was telling him what a huge mistake he was making. He pushed it away.

"I just…I don't know what to…how am I supposed to deal with this?" Kim demanded timidly. The tears began to form. It hurt him to see her like this. She was the strongest person he knew. She could do anything. But apparently this was too much for her.

* * *

This was getting to be too much for her. Kim had been tempted not to come to the funeral at all. But gently, in that loving way he had about him, Raymond had insisted. It would give her closure, he said. Of course he would come. He would go wherever she needed him. And she was grateful. This would be a good marriage. Maybe she didn't quite love Raymond with the intensity she had loved Ron, but it would be the steady, dependable security she felt she needed.

The funeral was open casket. Since there were no remains to put in it, the Stoppables asked, instead, that each person should bring something that either belonged to Ron or reminded them of him, and they would put it all in the casket as a monument to Ron Stoppable. Kim had brought her yearbook from senior year, convinced she was never going to open it again anyway, and needing to put those memories behind her. She had also retrieved the remnant of Ron's Driver's License which Monique had found that night. The police had it, but were willing to release it to her since it didn't prove to be much use as evidence. Their case was proceeding slowly. In some ways, she felt she was closer to finding Deathray than anyone else.

She studied the photo of the Driver's License, gazing at the man Ron had become. Handsome, but his eyes were dark and brooding. She guessed the last six years weren't happy ones for him… either.

The rabbi's voice droned in the background. Her mother sobbed quietly while her father tried to comfort her. Mr. Dr. Possible seemed to have aged twenty years in the last forty-eight hours. He'd already semi-retired from his position at the lab. Raymond was doing most of the work anyway, busy on some secret project that even her father didn't know about, and he never asked. If his daughter could trust Raymond, then he certainly could.

Trust had suddenly become an issue lately. Her relationship with Ron had been completely open, they kept nothing from each other. But when she asked Raymond to postpone the wedding, she didn't give him any reasons. She felt sure he would do his best to discourage her return to hero work, and after yesterday morning, she was seriously considering making her return permanent.

Originally, it was only about catching and bringing Deathray to justice. But yesterday morning, battling Deathray… yes, it was a defeat, and he got away, but she realized how much she missed vanquishing evil. This is what she was born to do. And this guy, Ronin, practically read her mind on the rooftop of the bank. They'd read each other's minds, in fact. He figured out her plan without a word passing between them. And then, when she was falling, she _knew_ he'd leaped off the building in pursuit of her. She _knew_ he'd be there to catch her. She couldn't explain it, but it didn't matter. No wonder her brothers like working with him. She knew he was a loner type, and probably wouldn't take a partner, but maybe he'd conduct a few mission with her along.

The thought of him caused her to look up and around. Lo and behold, there he was in a treetop some fifty yards away. He wouldn't be seen by anyone but her trained eye. So he _did_ know Ron. And he was attending the funeral in his own way. It was so odd. She felt a sort of kinship with the ninja, a connection. Yesterday, hiding from Deathray, his embrace felt almost…

_Familiar._

It was a weird feeling.

When she stole a secretive glance up to the tree again, he was gone.

* * *

One late summer day going into their fourth year, Ron turned twenty-one. His father handed him a folder, the details of his Naco trust fund. On a slip of paper just inside the front cover, Mr. Stoppable had written down a figure, summing up what everything was worth.

There were so many zeroes.

That evening, Kim and Ron were having a birthday picnic by the lake. The fireflies were out in full force, and the surface of the lake was completely glassy save for the occasional fish that jumped out of the water, and on the opposite shore, someone was playing a soft rock station on their car radio. The music drifted gently across the water to them. They were on a blanket. He was laying on his back, she had her head on his chest. They watched the stars come out one by one.

Ron pulled the piece of paper with the figure on it out of his pocket.

Kim sat up and stared at it.

"Wow", she gasped, "So that car you bought me was actually a cheap gift."

His eyes widened in shock.

"Kidding!", she said with a mischievous grin, "And here I thought I would be going off to med school with a poor boyfriend back home.

"Oh, I don't think you should leave Ronald behind anymore, do you?" came the voice of her father. Standing up and turning around, Kim noticed her parents emerging from the edge of the clearing.

"Dad?"

"It just wouldn't be right", agreed another voice. Ron's parents came out from behind a large oak tree nearby.

"What are you guys doing here?" she asked, "Is this a surprise party for Ron?"

"Not exactly," Mr. Stoppable answered.

"Ronald's got something he wants to ask you", her father said quietly.

From across the water drifted the strains of the song "Could It Be". Their song.

Kim turned around to find Ron on one knee, holding a small jewel box with the lid open. The ring was a platinum band, and rather than a large, gaudy diamond, it was crowned with a medium sized stone surrounded by smaller ones in a sort of bouquet. The band itself was encrusted with diamonds all the way around. Kim's jaw almost hit the blanket.

Two minutes later, Kim's mother and future mother-in-law were admiring the ring on Kim's finger while Ron's dad popped open a bottle of champagne.

Year four was a busy one for them. In order to graduate, they each had to take on a truckload of credits. In the spring semester, just to see if he was interested in a related career, Ron took an internship at a drug research firm. His boss, Doctor Heeler, was a kindly old man; brilliant, but somewhat absent-minded. He was always asking Ron to remember things.

"Ron" he'd say, "I need you to remember the last equation in this formula. Ron, what was my password for the medical journal website? Ron, where is my lab coat."

"X minus 4 equals Z squared" Ron would reply without giving it much thought, "Your password is 'beaker', and you're wearing your lab coat."

For the most part, the job was dull, and Heeler allowed Ron to do his other schoolwork on the clock.

One day, however, Heeler burst into the lab, excited and muttering to himself.

"Ron!", he exclaimed, "I need you to remember this nucleotide sequence! Are you ready?"

"Yes", Ron said looking up disinterestedly from his work.

"X4171. Can you remember that?"

"Sure", Ron didn't give it another thought.

The following week, Heeler disappeared. Just vanished without a trace. Ron asked if Team Possible could assist in the search.

"Of course," Kim replied and had Wade keep his electronic ears open for any information.

The next month, Kim and Ron graduated from GCU. Ron with a General Studies major, but with a minor in Theater, Kim with her Bachelor's in Medicine. She had been accepted to Johns Hopkins University for the coming fall, but that was a thousand years away in her mind. They would be getting married in a week, and it was all she could think about.

On the morning five days before the wedding, the Kimunicator beeped.

"I've got a lead on Dr. Heeler." Wade informed them, "I think you're gonna need battle gear for this one."

They slipped into their battlesuits. Kim's was the white with blue trim, Ron's was white with silver trim.

"I've got transport all lined up," Wade said, "You need to get to the airport."

Kim looked at Ron. _Ready?_ her eyes asked him.

Ron checked his pocket and verified Rufus was asleep inside. He nodded to her.

They set out, neither of them knowing it would be their last mission together.

* * *

Kim Possible was growing weary, She raised the hospital bed high enough so she could lean back against it and still talk to him.

"I can't do this anymore," he said getting up and walking to the door.

"I just can't."

He turned the handle and stepped out to the waiting room.

Kim sat staring after him, still in shock and disbelief. She lowered her head, put her face in her hands, and wept.

She never saw him again.

* * *

Misery. Utter Misery.

Ronin stood outside the abandoned warehouse. This was where the empty battlesuit had come to a rest the night of the reunion. He figured Deathray's lair had to be nearby.

He'd left the Lotus Blade at home with a note detailing instructions for its return to Master Sensei. Wade would find it. Ronin hadn't shut off the override since the battle with Deathray the day before. Wade had no idea where he was.

His mind was numb. She had seen him! Of all the people at the funeral, she was the only one who knew he was there. It was too much for him to handle.

Ronin decided his one colossal mistake was not in ending their relationship after their final disastrous mission together, but rather it was in coming back to Middleton at all. What made him think he could be anything other than a pathetic sidekick?

That had been his whole intention, after all. The years of training, setting himself up as his own superhero, all of it he had done with the intent of impressing her; showing her he wasn't a failure or a buffoon. He'd come sailing back into her life, sweep her off her feet, show her he could make something of himself.

It turned out she was engaged, and he'd been such a fool to think she'd wait for him. After all, he was the one who walked away, never telling her where he was going, or when he'd be back. Originally, he had no intention of coming back, but he thought if there was just one chance…

He'd made a pretty big mess of everything. Now, there seemed to be only one shot at setting things right. He couldn't bear the thought of putting Kim's life in danger again. But maybe, he thought, just maybe if he offered himself as a sacrifice to Deathray, the villain might be appeased. He had come to the conclusion at last, that he just could not bear living without her.

Somewhere far off, he heard the thumps and hums of heavy machinery. He thought all these warehouses had been abandoned. But he could be wrong. He certainly was wrong about everything else in his life.

Images of a suffering Kim Possible haunted him. His mind boiled over with the sights and sounds of yesterday. Watching in horror as Deathray swatted her from the air. Or when she was almost vaporized. Or that final mission six years ago. Cries of pain. Images of agony. All because of him.

He looked about. Somewhere there was bound to be a secret entrance. He'd done this enough times.

At one end of the warehouse were three massive boilers. Two were in operation, the fire glowing within them, but the center one was dark. He walked up to it, turned the main control knob, and the boiler slid noisily backwards to reveal a ramp that went underground. At the bottom of the ramp, alarms began to blare. He found himself in a massive underground room full of electronic equipment. One entire wall was covered with a view screen. Right in the center of the room was a large, round sunken tank that extended six feet below the floor. The alarms abruptly shut off. There was a corridor at the far end of the huge central chamber. From it came the sounds of stomping metal; the sounds of Deathray.

He strode into the room and walked right up to Ronin, disintegrator at the ready.

For a moment, they stood face to face, regarding each other.

"What do you want, Ninja?" came the booming electronic voice.

"I have come to offer a trade", he responded.

"What kind of trade?"

"My life for Kim Possible's."

Silence.

"Elaborate", Deathray demanded.

"If you give me your assurance that you will not kill or harm Kim Possible, then you can have my life to do with as you see fit.." Ronin said firmly.

Silence again.

"You have my word" Deathray finally said.

Somewhere deep inside Ronin there was still Ron Stoppable. He was still a guy who sometimes didn't really think things through to their logical conclusion. He thought since Deathray just had a beef with _him_, then he'd leave Kim alone after the ninja was out of the way. Ronin, of course, was lost in his 'sacrifice-myself-for-the-girl' delusion of heroism. It never occurred to him that the bad guy wouldn't keep his word.

"Then I surrender myself to you", he said, and pulled off his mask.

* * *

"Stoppable?" Ray yelped inside Deathray's cockpit. He sounded like startled puppy.

"**_STOPPABLE?"_** he bellowed, this time enraged.

He raised a massive, mechanical arm, swung it as hard as he could, and batted the ninja away. Ronin sailed through the air, slamming into the wall on the far side of the room. He crumpled up in a heap and barely stirred. Deathray stomped over to him and powered up his disintegrator.

He stood there, contemplating the dark warrior.

"What are you waiting for? Vaporize him!" Shego shouted over the communicator.

"No", Ray said, lowering the disintegrator, "Too quick. Too easy. This is Ron Stoppable. I want to watch him suffer."

* * *

When Ronin regained consciousness, he found he was on his knees, his arms chained behind him to the floor of the sunken tank. He looked up to see Deathray standing above him. Neither of them said a word. From small, square holes placed around the floor of the tank, water began to bubble and surge forth. Ronin struggled a little; drowning was actually one of his darkest fears. He craned his head around to see the chain that bound his hands and arms went through a loop welded to the floor. In addition, the chain around his arms was welded together, as opposed to being held together by a lock. Deathray had been thorough. There was no way Ronin would be able to struggle out of these. But then again, he wasn't really trying.

The water level surged upward. His knees were already below the surface.

A noise caught his attention and he looked up. Someone was climbing out of the mechanized battlesuit. The figure came to stand at the edge of the tank, glowering down at him. Where had he seen that face before.

_Yesterday, at the funeral._

Ray Beam! Kim's fiancé!

This was Deathray?

Ronin's mind went blank. Was Kim turning to villainy?

"Awww," said a hauntingly familiar voice, "Ninja boy looks scared."

The owner of the voice walked over to Ray and gave him a passionate kiss, then turned to look down at Ronin with a sadistic grin.

_Shego!_

The water level had reached his waist.

Ronin's heart began to gallop. This was all some elaborate revenge plot against Kim! And he'd played right into it! In one bitterly final twist of irony, Ronin realized he had made his last, and probably his most colossal mistake. He had abandoned Kim at the hands of her enemies. Despair washed over him like a tidal wave. Now Ronin saw fresh new images of the suffering they would no doubt put Kim through.

What had he done?

He began to struggle weakly against the chains. The water level was up to his chest.

* * *

Shego stood, her arms around Ray, looking down at the wretched face of Ron Stoppable. How many times had she seen that face twisted in triumph over her defeat? How many humiliating wisecracks had she endured at his expense?

But now, revenge was finally coming to pass.

And yet… it wasn't quite what she'd expected. She was expecting anger and defiance from him. Maybe some sort of statement about how they'd never get away with this. But what she saw on his face was confusion, uncertainty, and finally, despair. She realized he was thinking about Kim, not about himself. His mind was centered on the safety and well being of the one he loved.

No one had ever felt that way for Shego.

Now, she finally discovered why the villain walked away after leaving a victim in some elaborate trap of doom.

Cowardice.

They didn't have the courage to look their victims in the face. They were too afraid they would see what Shego was seeing now; an image that would haunt her the rest of her life.

As the water level surged upward, she saw a single, solitary tear escape his eye, and run down his cheek.

Then the water rose and engulfed him completely.

* * *

_Kim_

He hadn't intended to take a deep breath before the water rose above him, but due to some survivor's reflex, he couldn't help it. Sounds became muffled, and his vision blurred.

_I've abandoned you._

Slowly his held breath escaped him. He tried not to breath in again, but once again, survivors reflex took over. Water flooded into his lungs. He struggled vainly against the chains. Everything began to turn gray.

_Kim._

His struggling eased, and then ceased altogether.

_I'm so sorry._

Ronin – Ron Stoppable – knew no more.

* * *

At that moment, on the other side of Middleton, in an upstairs bedroom, the Kimunicator beeped. 


	10. Chapter 9

OK, so I am now officially overwhelmed. To say the reviews are flattering is an understatement. What's more, I'm having so much fun doing this. The creative process is like a drug with me. For those who have questions (anything except "what's gonna happen next") please feel free to drop me an e-mail (it's in my profile), I love discussing things like plot structure, character development, etc…. more than happy to answer or discuss those kinds of questions. To answer just one question here: yes, I have been trying to start a writing career, so far no luck. My reasons for being here at fanfic are several, but the main one is that this is good exercise for an aspiring writer (and I just discovered it). Plus, I freely admit, I love the feedback. Once again, as soon as I complete this story, I intend to read the works of everyone who was kind enough to leave a review.

So, my humblest thanks to:Tanya16, Spooks-a-lot, Classic Cowboy, Cptnshort, Jokerisdaking, pokey, LKillingsworth, Mithlond88, SestrenNK, recon228, Jezrianna2.0, ps2teen1213, JPMod, knuckz, Widow Shark, zebraFinch, aimtbj, FutureGoddess, willk1989, kimnronever, and sehnsucht792.

So you think Ron's gonna live? Read on:

* * *

Chapter 9

Alarms.

And they were the last ones he wanted to hear.

Ronin hadn't shut off the override, and Wade was beginning to wonder if he'd forgotten. When the alarms went off, he had a pretty good idea where Ronin might be. Wade had designed the suit to broadcast vital information such as pulse, breathing, heart rate and so forth regardless of whether the override was engaged or not. If one of Ronin's vitals was pushed outside the acceptable norms for a human being, it triggered an alarm.

Wade disengaged the override and pulled up every bit of telemetry the suit was gathering. One of the cameras in the mask was broadcasting a skewed angle of a dark room, the other camera showed nothing. Body temperature seemed fine, but the humidity levels were in the extreme. Heart rate was rapid and increasing.

Wade needed help, and he could think of only one person. He turned to an old monitor, punched a button, and then resumed what he was doing.

He took a hyper-sonar scan of the area. Using sonic waves, he was able to paint a picture of sorts, of the immediate area Ronin was in. The monitor showed a greenish image of shapes and lines; hard surfaces the sound waves were bouncing off of. As best he could tell, Ronin was in some kind of sunken room. On a ledge above him were two figures, one male, one female. Behind the figures he could make out the unmistakable silhouette of Deathray. The image blurred and tried to re-form, then blurred again. On a hunch, Wade re-adjusted the settings to compensate for liquid submersion and the image sharpened.

Suddenly, the old monitor sprang to life.

"Wade?"

* * *

The Kimunicator had beeped several times before she remembered she'd put it back in her hope chest. She pulled it out and pushed the appropriate button. On the screen appeared a man in his early twenties, or late teens, busily checking monitors and punching buttons.

"Wade?"

"Kim!" Wade didn't even turn to look at her, "I need you on your roof, in your battlesuit in sixty seconds. Don't ask why, I don't have time to explain right now."

"I…yeah, OK!"

The screen went blank. Kim slipped into her battlesuit and climbed out the window with no idea what was about to happen to her.

* * *

Suddenly, the heart rate plummeted. Wade began to panic, Ronin was obviously in the process of drowning. He couldn't just send Kim into battle and hope she'd have enough time to revive a drowned ninja.

_Calm down, _he ordered himself.

Another alarm beeped. The Ninjet had arrived at the Possible residence. The Kimunicator came to life again.

"Get in! I'll contact you once you're in the air." He barked.

"I don't know how to fly-" Kim's voice was worried.

"I've got it covered, now HURRY!"

Wade looked back at the sonar image. The two figures up on the ledge looked like they were embracing. For the moment, their attention seemed to be only on each other.

_Perfect._

Wade boosted the power gain on the suit, extended the field as far as he could, and engaged the cloak.

* * *

Shego kissed him fiercely, trying to drive the image of Ron out of her head. It wasn't working. The tank was nearly full, the buffoon had been under for almost twenty seconds.

"Mmmm", Ray said pulling his face away from hers, "I think Stoppable's death actually made your kisses sweeter. You know, after I get married, you should-"

Ray shoved her aside violently, Shego went sprawling.

"He's GONE!", Ray bellowed, staring into the tank. All he could see was swirling, frothing water as the level continued to rise. Ray looked wildly about.

Shego sprang to her feet and looked into the tank with a shocked expression, "Where could he have gone? I didn't hear anything."

Ray didn't respond. He pulled out his cell phone and punched three buttons. Deathray sprang to life. The suit walked over to him, stopped, and out snaked two mechanical arms. They seized Ray by the shoulders, hauling him through the hatch and into the cockpit. He powered up every weapon available to him, turned and walked up the ramp out of the lair. At the top, Deathray picked up the signal of the ninja's aircraft approaching.

"What do you want me to do?" Shego came running up behind him.

Deathray spun, a massive arm slammed her into a nearby wall. She fell in a heap and did not move.

"Nothing", he said coldly and rocketed into the air.

* * *

The cockpit of the tiny aircraft was cramped. It accelerated away from her house at an alarming rate, banked left, and headed across town. Wade appeared on the screen in front of her.

"What's up, Wade?"

"I need your help," he said hurriedly, "Ronin is in trouble, and he may be dying."

_Deathray_, Kim thought immediately.

"Set me down near his position, I'll try to-"

"I can't set you down", Wade cut her off, "Deathray is already airborne and on an intercept course with the Ninjet."

"The what?"

"The aircraft you're in. under your seat is a small compartment with a black outfit inside. Put it on, fast."

* * *

Wade glanced back at the monitors. No one seemed to be in the sunken room anymore. He disengaged the cloak in case he needed what was left of the power later.

He wasn't sure how long he could keep Deathray occupied. Most villains didn't fall for the same trick twice. Well, Drakken tended to, but he was…well…he was Drakken.

But what to do about Lord Deathray?

He checked Ronin's vitals. Heart rate had slowed even further. He couldn't possibly be conscious.

Suddenly an idea. He pulled up Kim on the monitor again, she had just finished changing.

"Are your brothers at home?"

"Yeah," she responded, "I left them in my room."

"Still got the same dedicated landline?"

"Yes."

"Back to you in ten seconds."

Wade checked another monitor, Deathray was three miles off and still on an intercept course with the Ninjet.

Jim's face appeared before him.

"Wade?"

"No time for questions. Deathray is currently pursuing an unmanned aircraft being piloted by me. It's a decoy. I need you guys to run interference for me."

In the background, Wade could see Tim already pulling on his battle gear.

"You got it," Jim answered.

"I'm gonna lead him to the Middleton Fairgrounds. You can pick him up there. Just keep him busy, don't attempt to apprehend him, he's carrying some serious firepower."

He switched the monitor off without waiting for acknowledgment. Back to Kim.

"You need to bail out when I give the signal. Deathray is approaching fast."

"I'm guessing you have some method of getting me past him." Kim said.

"Your suit is equipped with a cloak and a small parachute. As soon as I open the cockpit, I'm going to engage the cloak. Try not to move too much during freefall, and don't pull your chute until the last second. I'm switching to the audio on your suit."

Wade pushed a couple of buttons.

"Can you hear me?"

"I hear you", she acknowledged.

"OK, in your mask are a pair of goggles with a built-in heads-up display. Put the goggles on, and I'll pull up a map. You see the map?"

"Yes," she confirmed.

"The highlighted warehouse is your target. Deathray's lair should be beneath it."

"All right…hey Wade?"

"Yeah?"

"Is this like, one of Ronin's spare suits?"

"Yeah, but don't worry, I had it dry-cleaned. I'm engaging the cloak now. I don't want to put any pressure on you, but Ronin's heart rate is very erratic. Please hurry."

"I'll do my best," she paused slightly, then added "It's really great to see you again, Wade. You're gonna have to tell me how you got hooked up with this Ronin guy some time."

"Oh…yeah. Great story, you'll love it." Wade said cryptically.

* * *

The canopy slid forward and Kim was hit by a wall of wind. As she stood up to climb out, she got a jolt of adrenaline as the Ninjet dropped away beneath her. The aircraft went into a steep dive, then banked hard right. Wade was attempting to draw Deathray away from her.

Kim flattened out, tucked her arms at her side and put her legs together straight out behind her. Tilting her head forward slightly, she got another jolt of adrenaline as she caught sight of Deathray hurtling straight toward her. She hoped Wade's attempt to change his course would be successful, because if not, she would splatter against his windshield in two seconds.

One second.

Deathray rolled over and banked to his left as Kim – still cloaked - shot through the jet wash less than fifteen feet from where her fiancé was sitting.

* * *

Wade piloted the Ninjet toward the fairgrounds. He couldn't tell if the twins had arrived yet and had no wish to circle around the grounds waiting for them. Last time, he simply took the jet into low orbit, knowing Deathray couldn't follow him up to that altitude. But if he did that now, Deathray would just go back to his lair and find Kim. The Ninjet came up on the fairgrounds and he turned on the infrared cameras. Two human shaped heat signatures were crouched, waiting near the grandstands. Wade turned the aircraft toward the other side of the field, away from the grandstands, giving the twins an opportunity to ambush Deathray when he arrived. A quick glance through the rear-facing camera confirmed Deathray was still in pursuit. He set the jet down at the far end of the field and opened the canopy hoping Deathray would think Ronin had run off, or was at least nearby. He couldn't fight Deathray himself. He and Ronin had agreed the Ninjet should have no weapons in case it was ever hijacked or outright stolen. But Wade found himself wishing he at least-

Another alarm.

Wade checked the source, though he already knew what it meant.

Flat line. No heartbeat.

Ronin was dead.

* * *

Kim turned the knob on the unused boiler and sprinted down the ramp. At the bottom she looked around to see if anyone might be within. Seeing no one, she moved to the edge of the tank. It was empty, save for a few puddles here and there. Ronin was lying face down. A length of chain lay nearby.

"Kim", Wade said in her ear, "He just flatlined."

"I'm all alone down here, Wade, " Kim whispered urgently.

"I'm not reading any heat signatures other than yours and Raw- I mean Ronin's. If anyone comes near the lair, I'll alert you."

Kim hopped down into the tank. She pushed on Ronin's back to get all the water out of his lungs, then rolled him over. Laying her head on his chest, she checked for a heartbeat. None. She gave five quick pumps to his chest and then pinched his nose, tilted his head back, and put her mouth on his, forcing air into his lungs.

* * *

Deathray swooped low and came to a landing near the jet.

With two metallic _thunks, _grappler cables attached themselves to Deathray's back and pulled him over. He crashed to the ground.

Jim ignited a rocket pack and flew into the air. Tim ran straight for the machine. Deathray stayed on his back and fired into the air with the disintegrator. He struggled to his feet to find himself facing two opponents, neither of whom were dressed in Ninja garb.

"Where is Stoppable?" He bellowed.

The twins looked at each other.

"Ron Stoppable – the one called Ronin – where is he?" Deathray repeated.

The twins looked at each other again. They shared a realization.

"Ronin-", Tim began.

"-is Ron", Jim finished.

Deathray fired again.

* * *

She checked for a heartbeat. Nothing.

Kim pumped his chest five more times.

"I don't suppose this thing comes with a defibrillator, does it?" Kim inquired.

"Let me check your power storage… the cloak used up most of the batteries. There's enough for maybe two jolts at three hundred volts each." Wade answered.

"Give me one when I tell you," Kim ordered. Then, remembering a bad experience she once had with electricity, she asked, "Is this going to hurt me?"

"No. Place your left hand over his heart and let me know when you're ready."

She put her hand on Ronin's chest, "Now!"

Electricity surged from her suit and into his body. Ronin went rigid, his back arching involuntarily, then went limp again.

"Anything on your monitor?" Kim asked.

A second of silence.

"One weak blip and then flat again." Wade answered.

"OK, give me the last one when I tell you," Kim said, "Now!"

Ronin's body arched again, then went limp. She leaned over him and looked into his face for the first time. "Come on, Ronin," she whispered, "You've gotta come back. Come on…"

An odd familiarity came over her. She squinted and looked closer.

"I think we may have something," Wade said excitedly.

Kim tilted her head and studied his face.

_The driver's license photo._

_**RON?**_

Kim gave a startled scream and fell backwards, scooting away from him. She turned instantly white.

"Kim!" Wade hollered, "Are you all right? What happened?"

Silence.

"Kim!"

Her mouth was suddenly very dry.

"Is this Ron?" she asked fearfully, hardly daring to believe it.

"His heart is beating, but it's weak," Wade tried to ignore the question, "We've got to get him to a hospital."

"Wade!", she demanded, "Answer me!"

"It's not my place to say," Wade said with conviction.

_That means yes._

She moved back to him and looked into his face.

_It **is** Ron._

Unconscious, his breathing was shallow and raspy. Urgency suddenly flooded back into her mind.

"We've got to get him out of the lair in case Deathray returns." Kim said in an extremely shaky voice, "But I can't carry him alone."

"I can take care of that." Wade answered.

Ronin's suit glowed crimson. Kim gave a startled yelp as she watched Ronin seemingly move under his own strength. His head still hung limp, but his legs gathered up beneath him and he struggled to his feet.

"There's not much power left," Wade said.

Kim put an arm under Ronin's shoulders and helped Wade walk him up the ramp.

_Ron…_

His name echoed over and over in her mind.

"Emergency services will meet you in the alley at the far end of the warehouse. ETA four minutes. Your brothers should be able to keep Deathray busy for that long," Wade said.

They collapsed in the alley just as the suit ran out of power.

* * *

From the shadows, she watched Kim carry Ron up the ramp and out of sight. She rubbed her wounds and wondered, if Ray hadn't done what he did to her, would she still have drained the tank and removed Ron's chains?

_I used to be the hero once,_ she thought bitterly to herself.

She actually considered giving Stoppable CPR when she heard the boiler slide away at the top of the ramp. Of course it would be Kim. So many people on this earth, but it just _had_ to be Kim. She watched Kim give him mouth-to-mouth, and smiled at her scream when she finally recognized him. Regret could be a powerful force, but it could not conquer hatred. Could be what Shego hated the most about Kim was the fact that she used to _be_ Kim. But Shego had long since forgotten how to be independent, much less a hero. She needed men who could take care of her. Yes, Drakken had been a bigger buffoon than Stoppable ever was, but Drew cared for her; provided for her.

And he never once hit her.

She was bemused to discover herself comparing Drakken to her current lover. She'd never really looked at Drakken that way. Theirs was a relationship of evil, bumbling genius and disrespectful yet mysteriously loyal sidekick. She stayed with him not just because he took care of her, but because she could control him when she wanted to. There was one other thing. Somewhere deep down, she knew Drakken was helpless without her. He needed her, and it wasn't such a terrible thing to be needed by someone.

Not so with Ray. She originally thought she could control him, but the more he embraced his evil persona, the less stable he became. Had she created the monster? Or had she merely opened the door and let him loose?

She concluded, miserably, that she probably would never leave Ray. She just didn't have that kind of strength. What was worse, she knew with a certainty that Ray's behavior would just become more and more abusive as time went on. She looked back down the corridor to the football stadium-sized cave that had been hollowed out beneath the warehouse district. Ray's plans had gone beyond the simple elimination of Kim's soul mate. He'd decided there were much bigger fish in the world that needed frying.

With a mixture of bitterness and sadness, she resigned herself to her new position as Ray's sidekick and occasional punching bag. She'd get satisfaction in her own way. Helping save Stoppable was one example. Such was the nature of passive/aggressive vengeance; sabotage and secrecy. Tomorrow, she'd call things even, and pretend like nothing ever happened between them. In five days she'd stand patiently by as Ray married Kim Possible. Then in seven days, after Ray had his wedding night with his new bride, she'd assist him in this new plan of his. After all, it looked like it might work.

* * *

Sirens blared, lights flashed, they'd be at Middleton Medical Center in ten minutes. One irony after another came sailing through her mind. MMC was the last time she'd seen him, now here she was, on the way to that same hospital wearing his clothes. The paramedics recognized her, and allowed her to ride alone with Ron in the back of the ambulance. She let her mind drift back and oddly enough, it settled on a memory that Ron wasn't even in.

She remembered that day, three days after they were supposed to be married. They'd canceled the wedding but she went to the church that morning in the hopes Ron would somehow show up and declare it was all just a cruel joke. She sat in that car he'd bought her, staring at the church through tears of grief over what could have been. Then three days later, Wade alerted her to something Monkey Fist was doing; some theft of an idol or whatever. The thought of going on a mission without Ron left her feeling… what? Confused? Angry?

_Empty._

Felix had answered the door. She felt so ridiculous standing there in her mission gear, asking if Ron was available.

No, Felix told her sadly. Packed up his stuff and vanished. Sorry.

It was strange, feeling almost like an incomplete person. She'd once told her mother she couldn't save the world without Ron. But it wasn't until that moment she realized what she had truly meant by it. She drew strength from him, and now that source of strength was gone.

She managed, barely, to thwart Monkey Fist. But the writing was on the wall. If the world needed saving, someone else was going to have to save it from now on.

The ambulance hit a pothole, rousing her from her memories.

"Sorry", the medical technician called over his shoulder.

"Why didn't you tell me?" She asked quietly, looking at his face.

"I gave him my word," Wade said in her ear. "At the time it didn't seem like such a big deal."

"Why not?"

"You and I weren't exactly talking to each other much", Wade said matter-of-factly.

_Touché_, she thought grimly.

"I know you've got questions…" Wade began.

"Oh, you think?" she said sarcastically.

"…but I think it's best if he answers them himself when he's able to." Wade finished patiently.

She never took her eyes off Ron. It occurred to her that she really only had one question for him.

_Why?_

* * *

This wasn't a typical lair. There was a small, kind of sterile room that led into a larger room scattered with what looked like lab equipment. At the far end of the lab was a sort of observation window that looked out over a massive, hollowed-out room. That room had nothing in it that they could see. The floor was stainless steel, and the domed roof was littered with odd looking spiky things that neither of them could quite categorize. In the very center of the floor was a small hole, but its purpose was as big a mystery as anything else in the place.

The lair seemed to be empty.

"You think Wade gave us the wrong address?" Ron inquired.

The Kimunicator beeped.

"I heard that", Wade said, "Ron, you're in a lair in a hollowed out mountain on an island in the Mediterranean Ocean. If you're at the wrong place, I don't think the right one is two doors down."

"Knock it off, you two," Kim ordered looking around warily. "We should not have gotten in here so easily."

On cue, 12 large men in lab coats burst from hidden trapdoors all around them.

"Yep," Ron said calmly, as if he expected this to happen, "One of these days we're going to figure out there's no such thing as an empty lair!"

Kim sprang onto a nearby table and dropped two guards with a flying kick. Ron squared off against four guards, leaping over one and landing on another. One guard after another went down until Kim was pelted in the face with what looked like a white beanbag. A puff of white powder erupted as it struck her. Kim crumpled up on the floor unconscious.

"KP!" Ron shouted, and ran to her. Six guards tackled him and hauled him to his feet.

From behind a door, a man in a lab coat emerged. He was five feet tall, wore thick glasses, and had bushy white hair. He walked up to Kim's crumpled body.

"Most excellent", he observed and then moved on to Ron.

"Dr. Cody Pendant," Ron stated defiantly, "What have you done to her? And what have you done with Dr. Heeler?"

"Feh," Pendant waved a dismissive hand, "They are of no consequence. It is you I am interested in, my boy."

Ron's eyes narrowed, "Why."

"Ah, pretending to know nothing about this?" Pendant looked surprised, "Very well, I will enlighten you. As if you didn't already know."

Pendant paused and regarded Ron with a sinister grin.

"It seems your friend, Dr. Heeler, has developed an extraordinary process that – when combined with any drug it comes into contact with – is self-replicating. I don't need to tell you the value of such a process. I could take a single pill, replicate it a million times over and sell it at greatly reduced prices on the open market. But of course, that would save lives and better our civilization, making healing drugs virtually free for all the people of the earth. I am not interested in such things. But what if I could take something that was poisonous and self-replicating and drop it into a country's water supply? I think most countries would pay a high price to prevent me from such actions."

"You're like, freakishly insane, you know that?" Ron snapped.

"What gave it away?" Pendant inquired sarcastically, "Was it the hollowed out mountain lair in the middle of the Mediterranean?"

He paused for effect. What kind of effect, no one was really sure.

"Anyway, after much – shall we say, persuasion - Dr. Heeler gave us the formula for this self-replication process. Unfortunately, it seems there is just one nucleotide sequence missing from the final equation, and we are unable to complete it. Dr. Heeler told us – again, with much persuasion – that he gave you this information. Now I wish you to give it to me." He stood and glared at Ron.

Ron went pale. He remembered something about a nucleotide sequence at Heeler's lab, but Heeler had asked him to remember so many things for him he couldn't separate out the necessary information!

"I don't know what your talking about," Ron stammered unconvincingly.

Suddenly, Ron broke from his captors, vaulted over a nearby table, and dropped two guards.

"Kim! Wake up!", he shouted, taking on a third guard. She remained perfectly still. Eight guards surrounded him. Dread coursed through Ron's mind. While Kim could certainly take out eight guards, probably without breaking a sweat, he knew he couldn't.

He tried anyway.

He was able to subdue five of them before the rest tackled him again.

"Take them to the detox room!" Pendant shouted.

Twenty minutes later, Ron and Kim were at opposite ends of the large domed room with the stainless steel floor. They were both suspended above the floor by steel clamps around their hands and feet.

Ron was frantically trying to remember the nucleotide sequence.

Kim had a manacle locked on one wrist. Attached to it was a metal spike about six inches long. In addition, she had large steel manacles around her ankles. Ron didn't have these things attached to him.

Kim coughed and spluttered. She was beginning to come around.

Up in the observation room, Dr. Pendant stood looking at them.

"You know", he said over an intercom, "Back in the old days when someone had an addiction, they were treated with electro-shock therapy. The weak-minded called the practice barbaric, and it was subsequently outlawed. But I am of the opinion it was a most effective method of curing a patient's ills. You, Mr. Stoppable, seem to need a cure for your forgetfulness."

"I know the sequence," Ron said in a panic.

"I know", Pendant answered.

"Let us go and I'll tell you what it is," Ron demanded.

"Tell me what it is, and I'll let you go," Pendant countered.

He waited.

"No?" He continued, "Then let us proceed. Do not worry, Mr. Stoppable, we will help you remember the sequence. I see Ms. Possible is beginning to revive, so let us begin."

"Don't tell him anything, Ron," Kim called weakly from the other side of the room.

"Oh, he'll tell. Do not worry about that," Pendant said confidently, "Here is the situation. One of you will perish, and never leave this room. The other will be free to go. Attached to Ms. Possible's wrist is a metal rod that needs to be inserted into the hole in the center of the floor. Do this, and the exit door you see on the far side of the room will open and you will be free to go."

Kim and Ron looked at each other worriedly.

"There is, as always, a catch," Pendant continued, "Only Ms. Possible can decide who will leave this room alive. Soon, an electrical force-field will begin traveling across the room, beginning on Ms. Possible's side, and ending with Mr. Stoppable. If that force-field makes it across the room unimpeded, then Mr. Stoppable will be crushed to death, and Ms Possible will be free to go. However, if she wishes, Ms. Possible can make her way to the center of the floor and insert the rod into the hole. This will short out the electrical force-field. But, for every step she takes toward the center, she will receive an electric shock which will increase in intensity the closer she gets to her objective. When she inserts the rod, she will receive a fatal jolt of electricity, but Mr. Stoppable will be free to go."

"You are so freakishly insane", Kim shouted

"What are you two, twins?" Pendant asked, annoyed.

"Pendant!" Ron cried fearfully. "Just give me time to think!"

"I am." Pendant replied, then he turned away from the intercom, his attention distracted momentarily.

Ron looked down, "Rufus!"

The naked mole rat peeked out of his pocket. He'd been awake for some time.

"Get to that door over there and climb inside the control panel. See if you can find a control switch that will unlock these clamps and open the door!"

Rufus gibbered and chattered, then jumped out of Ron's pocket and scampered across the floor. He opened the control panel and climbed inside before Pendant turned back to look at them.

"Are we ready?" Pendant asked.

Suddenly the clamps sprang open. Rufus had done it! Ron sprinted across the floor toward Kim.

"What is this!" Bellowed Pendant. He slammed his fist down on the panel in front of him.

Five feet before Ron could reach her, the force-field dropped between them. He crashed into it and bounced off as though it were concrete.

"Ron!" Kim cried.

The force field began advancing deliberately across the floor, pushing Ron back to his own side.

Kim gritted her teeth and took a step forward. Pain shout through her. She cried out.

"No!" Ron shouted, "Kim! Stay there!"

The force field continued, now reaching the halfway point. Ron was pushed backwards. Kim took another step, and received another, more powerful jolt.

Ron began to panic, "Pendant! Listen it's…uh…it's X…uh…X7 something something."

"Inadequate", Pendant replied impassively.

Kim took two more steps and collapsed with a painful shriek.

"NO!" Ron pounded his fists uselessly on the advancing force-field.

Kim struggled to her knees and lunged forward. Pain like she had never felt before surged through her. She screamed and collapsed again.

"KIM! Just stay there! Don't move anymore," Ron cried in terror. "Pendant, please, I'm begging you. Stop now and I will do my best to tell you what you want to hear!"

"You know," Pendant said in an amused tone, "Dr. Heeler said the very same thing!"

The field came at him. The tops of it bent toward the wall and it formed itself into a large bubble that began to shrink rapidly.

Kim could barely pull herself up to her elbows. Using her hands, she pushed herself forward. Blinding white pain coursed through her body. She uttered a low groan.

Ron was up against the wall at last, the field shrinking in upon him. He sank to his knees, covered his head, and prepared for the inevitable.

Nothing.

_Kim!_

_NO!_

Ron leaped to his feet and sprinted for the center of the room. He pulled up short when he saw Kim, lying on the floor, moaning.

She was ten feet short of the hole.

Ron looked down in horror. It seemed Kim's choice had been taken out of her hands. Lying half out of the hole was the burned, lifeless body of a naked mole rat.

The room began to shake. Muffled explosions were coming from somewhere beneath them. Whatever Rufus had used to short out the field had caused a chain reaction in Pendant's equipment. The lair began to tear itself apart.

Ron moved over to Kim and struggled to get her to her feet. Her left arm was bleeding, tears were brimming her eyes.

"Ron?" She said weakly.

"Don't worry, KP" He said absently, looking around frantically. He tried to reassure her, but wasn't so convinced himself, "I'm here for ya... no mater what."

Ron's mind was a chasm of white noise. He couldn't think straight. First problem was the door. He looked and saw it was wide open. Rufus seemed to have taken care of everything. He stooped to pick up the remains of his friend, but an explosion tore a rift in the floor. What was left of Rufus plummeted into it and was never seen again.

They stumbled together out through the lair as explosions rocked the island. Pendant and his men had gone. Ron found the Kimunicator discarded on a table and picked it up.

"Everything all right?" Wade asked frantically.

"No," Ron responded, "We need a ride off this rock five minutes ago."

Kim slumped in his arms, and finally lost consciousness.

A random thought popped into his head.

_X4171._

He finally remembered the crucial nucleotide sequence.

* * *

Ron never had the heart to tell her about Rufus. That first day in the waiting room at Middleton Medical Center was pure emotional torture. Four days until the wedding and Kim was barely conscious. He'd sat by her bedside most of that first day, but when her parents came to visit, he had to get out of there. The Possibles were all reassuring smiles and soothing remarks. But Ron knew better. She was in there because of him.

He walked, not caring where he was going. One painful thought after another crowded into his mind. Not the least being the fact that Kim had tried to sacrifice herself for him. Then there was Rufus, who had sacrificed himself for them both. And what about Ron? What exactly had Ron done?

Nothing.

Wait, that wasn't exactly true. He _had_ done something. He'd failed. Big time.

_X4171._

Look at that! He could call up the nucleotide sequence at will. It taunted him like a mosquito that always flew just out of reach before you could squish it. Six little syllables that could have prevented the death of his friend and the near-death of his fiancé. It was his fault they wound up in Pendant's lair in the first place! Oh, and let's not forget about Ron Stoppable's appalling lack of combat skills. Where Kim could have taken out eight goons, he'd barely managed five, and it gained them nothing. Wrong again, they'd actually gained a fabulous trip to the Middleton Medical Center! Three cheers for the idiot buffoon!

Ron Stoppable had gone from sidekick, to fiancé, to serious liability.

How many times would their relationship be used against them in some horrible plot? How many missions before Ron's lack of ability to do anything right got them both killed? How many times might Kim have to offer up her life to save his?

Ron arrived at the answer in short order: none.

If he and Kim weren't together, then she would never be in danger again.

It was just that simple.

Of course, if he told her all this, she'd just tell him he's being paranoid and talk him out of it. It was time for Ron Stoppable to step up and take some initiative. No more buffoonery, no more failures, no more liability.

No more danger to Kim.

When he finally sifted through all the information floating around in his head, he found one solid reason why he should end things with Kim as soon as he felt she could take it.

X4171. 

Four days until the wedding. She should be feeling better by tomorrow.

He'd tell her tomorrow.

And then get as far away from her as he could.

* * *

The first thing he was aware of was the rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor. It seemed to come from far away, and had an almost echo-y quality to it. Gradually he came to be aware of other sounds. There was the low hum of an air conditioning system. Voices from far away, muffled and unintelligible. He heard the occasional rustle of paper. He heard the whispery hiss of air through a small hose. That last sound was very close. He began to regain consciousness as though he were submerged in water and slowly making his way to the surface.

_Submerged in water._

A sudden, vivid memory washed over him and he began to struggle.

"Ron?" Came a far off voice.

He struggled to open his eyes, but couldn't yet.

"Ron, can you hear me?"

His mouth was bone dry. He found he couldn't speak.

"Ron, if you can hear me, just relax. Everything's OK. You're in the hospital."

His struggling ceased.

He opened his eyes a tiny fraction and painful light flooded into his head. He shut them tight again.

"Water", he croaked.

After a minute, a cup was lifted to his lips. He took some, spluttered and coughed. A cloth wiped his mouth.

"Just take it easy", the voice soothed.

"Kim?" He asked.

"I'm right here." She answered.

He lay still for a moment.

"How long?" He asked.

"You've been in the hospital for four days," she replied without emotion.

Four days! 

He struggled to open his eyes. After immense difficulty and much blinking, his vision returned to him. He turned his head. She was sitting in the chair, looking at him.

There was no one else in the room.

They gazed at each other for awhile. Then she got up to leave.

"Kim, wait," He rasped.

"I should go tell your parents you're awake", she said, reaching for the doorknob.

"I need to tell you something about Deathray." Ron said, struggling to sit up.

"I know all about Deathray", she replied.

Silence between them.

"Nothing to say?" she demanded, an edge in her voice.

"I'm glad you found out." he said quietly.

"Yeah, well, I'm not so sure I am." She said, tears beginning to pour forth.

"Isn't it better you know the truth?" he asked quietly.

"The truth? Just who are you to talk to me about the truth?" she sobbed. "How could you do something like this?"

"OK", he admitted, "I know it was a mistake to fake my death."

"Fake your death!" she practically shrieked. "Is that what you think this is about?"

"Well, then what-?"

"Ron!" she said angrily, choking back sobs, "I know that you're Deathray!"

Ron's mind went blank.

"My fiancé took me down to your supposed lair yesterday. When I told him all about what happened he went down to the warehouse to check it out. He found the big mechanized battle suit you used as Deathray. He showed me some of the entries you made in the computer. All your plans are there in detail. You pretended to be some superhero and swoop in to save the day. He even showed me the inside of the mechanical suit. We found your ninja mask in there, Ron!"

Ron tried to speak.

"I don't know how you got Wade to play along," she continued, "But it all makes perfect sense. Wade could easily pilot the suit by remote control. You guys fake a couple of battles… You almost killed me when we fell off the roof of the bank!"

"Wade told you all this?" Ron asked incredulous.

"I am not talking to Wade!" she blurted, "And if he contacts you, tell him to stay away from me."

She angrily wiped tears from her face.

"You're sick, Ron" she said in a quieter tone, "And you need help. I promise when I return from my honeymoon, I'll get you the best help available. I'm getting married tomorrow, which means I won't be able to see you again before we leave. But we'll discuss all this when I return."

With that, she opened the door and disappeared.

Ron tried to get up but was too weak.

_She thinks I'm Deathray!_

Ron Stoppable's world came crashing down around him.


	11. Chapter 10

My humblest thanks to all who are reading, whether or not you post a review. I am just glad you're reading and hope you enjoy the story.

And thanks to those who post (I hope you don't feel obligated to do so, but please know that I am very grateful for each and every one): Jezriana2.0, Jokerisdaking, Ari-Griffin, Lkillingsworth, Lonestarr, JPMod, Classic Cowboy, CptnShort, Mithlond88, Sestren NK, Unspoken Flame, knuckz, willk1989, ps2teen1213, sehnsucht792, Fuzzie Muzzie, recon 228 (with a shout out to the thin blue line. Thanks for doing what you do!), kimnronever, Tanya16, RainingInsanity, Kimberly Ann Possible, zebraFinch, aimtbj, poeticsoul, Cold-Chaos, BluJae, and Rynbard.

Today is Kim's wedding day:

* * *

Chapter 10 

_Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today… _

* * *

Four in the morning. Unable to sleep. His mind just wouldn't shut down. 

Ron was trying to fill in the blanks of the last four days and theorize just exactly how Ray managed to convince Kim that Ronin and Deathray were the same person.

When Kim had left, his parents came in a few minutes later. They were, of course, relieved to find him living. But they were clearly confused. His father was downright uncomfortable. Neither of them asked too many questions. He was sure they felt in some ways it might be better not to know the entire truth. In fact, the one question they never asked him was 'why'. Ron was alive, and that alone was enough to deal with for the time being.

Then things got worse.

His parents left, and he could feel their relief at the prospect of getting out of that room. The police came in and bombarded him with questions. How does the Deathray suit work? Where can we find this mysterious 'Wade' person? Are you aware that you endangered the life of one of the most respected neural physicists on the planet?

The words 'I don't know' certainly didn't seem to satisfy their curiosity.

From their questions, Ron was able to gather a little information. The Deathray suit was in a guarded police impound lot downtown. Ron was going to be brought up an a slew of charges, the most serious being reckless endangerment. They'd disconnected his phone, and taken away the TV. In addition, they were posting a twenty-four hour police guard outside his room, and would transfer him to the Middleton Maximum Security Prison to await trial when the doctor felt he was sufficiently recovered. A judge had already ordered Ron to be remanded without bail. Too much of a flight risk.

Ron looked out his window in complete despair. The orange glow of the streetlight outside lit up his room, giving everything a surreal appearance.

There were too many missing pieces to the puzzle. And the worst part was, Ron wasn't sure he would be able to bring the truth to light. The wedding was today. Kim would be on her honeymoon by tonight… he pushed that thought away. The idea that this monster, who'd apparently been cheating on her with Shego no less, would be… no, he couldn't think about that right now. But the real certainty of defeat was the fact that the police were involved, and they seemed to be pointing the finger in his direction. This is probably why his parents acted the way they did earlier.

Not for the first time today did Ron wish they hadn't saved him.

He got up to use the bathroom. He was still a little weak, but his strength was coming back to him. He thought hard about what he should do next. Maybe it was too late. Sometimes the bad guys won. The previous night he was convinced that he deserved to die for the suffering he had caused everyone. A lifetime in jail seemed like a light sentence.

_No_.

Self-pity and loathing is what had caused all this. If he hadn't walked away from Kim in the first place, Ray would never have been an issue. If he hadn't faked his death, Kim never would have been put in danger. And if he hadn't surrendered himself to Deathray…

It was time for Ron to forgive himself and accept what he'd done. He couldn't go back twenty-four hours, or a week, or six years and prevent himself from making three colossal mistakes. But he could prevent future ones. All he could do now was try to bring out the truth, and if he failed, then he would be put away for a long time. On the other hand, if he did nothing, he'd be put away for a long time. Seemed like there was only one option.

Coming out of the bathroom, he noticed his room was almost completely dark. He looked out the window.

The Ninjet was hovering just outside.

Momentarily blinding him, the landing lights blinked twice, then the aircraft rose toward the roof of the medical center.

Ron looked around. The police had taken his Ronin suit, of course, and there was the guard posted outside to think about. He went back into the bathroom, stood on the toilet, and lifted one of the ceiling tiles. He hoisted himself up. He wasn't sure how he'd get from that crawlspace to the roof. But it was a start.

An hour later, Ron found himself in the nurse's lounge on the top floor. Knowing the stairwell roof access door would be locked, he climbed out the window, scooted along the ledge, and shimmied up the drain pipe at the corner of the building. He decided this was an extraordinary feat considering the fact that he was still a little weak, plus he'd made it from his room to the roof in a backless hospital gown. And oh my, wasn't the air at five o'clock in the morning just a little nippy?

The Ninjet was parked at the far corner of the roof, well away from the helipad where the hospital security cameras were watching. Ron walked all the way around the edge of the roof, hoping the cameras wouldn't pick him up. If they did, there wasn't much he could do about it. Three feet away from the Ninjet, the cockpit slid open. Wade appeared on the screen.

"I tapped into the hospital security cameras, and I'm feeding them a ten second loop of an empty roof." Wade informed him.

"Well, then why not-"

"Park on the helipad? What if someone needed emergency care? That's like parking in a handicapped space!" Wade seemed almost offended.

"Yes, of course, what _was_ I thinking? Oh hey, good news. Kim thinks Deathray was my invention." He said matter-of-factly.

"I gathered that from some of the chatter I heard on the police bands yesterday." Wade acknowledged.

"It gets better," Ron continued, "Kim thinks you piloted the Deathray suit so we could stage mock battles that made me look like a hero."

"How is Kim buying into this? I've been trying the Kimunicator for the last two days and she won't answer. I mean…hey, who _is_ Deathray anyway? All I ever saw was a fuzzy green sonar image of two people who looked like they were kissing."

"Ah, that would be Ray Beam, and Shego." Ron informed him.

"Ray Beam and Shego," Wade repeated, "Kim's fiancé…and Shego. So Ray was trying to kill you the night of the reunion, and then at the bank, he said he just wanted you and not Kim. Oh man, he knocked Kim off the roof! Who is this guy? He must have figured out who you were. But why would he want you dead?"

"Hey, Wade," Ron said through chattering teeth, "Can we discuss this later? I'm standing here in a backless hospital gown."

"There's a spare suit in the compartment. And you said I was being obsessive when I made six of 'em", Wade mocked him.

"I didn't think it was obsessive," Ron said defensively, "These things are expensive. It just sounded unnecessary."

"This from the guy who once bought a two hundred karat diamond as a pinky ring." Wade challenged.

"Touché," Ron responded, "Hey, I don't suppose you packed any ninja boxers in here?"

"Sorry man, you're gonna have to go commando on this one."

"I hope Kevlar doesn't chafe", Ron said worriedly.

"Good thinking", Wade said sarcastically, "Because _that's_ your biggest problem right now. You're sounding like the old Ron Stoppable. How much Morphine did they give you?"

"None!" Ron said euphorically. He was actually beginning to _feel _like his old, unfocused goofball self.

Ron finished dressing, pulled on the mask, stepped to the edge of the roof, and looked out over Middleton. Low on the horizon, he could see the barest beginnings of daylight. The sun was about to rise on Kim Possible's wedding day. He took a deep, cleansing breath. For everything that felt wrong in his world at the moment, he still felt somehow rejuvenated. For the first time in a long time he had a purpose that extended beyond himself. If for no other reason, Kim had to know the truth before she became the bride of Deathray.

But bringing the truth to light was bound to be a delicate process. Ron already had two strikes against him; he'd walked away from Kim without explanation all those years ago, and then he'd faked his death. Those were things he couldn't deny. And they were probably contributing factors to the reason Kim believed Ron was Deathray. After all, he already had one secret identity, why not two? If he simply went over to her house and told her everything… she already thought he was crazy. This might just confirm her suspicions.

"So what now, Ronin?" Wade asked switching to the audio on the mask.

"Ron."

"Huh?"

"Let's leave Ronin alone for now. I feel like I just need to be Ron for awhile." He said introspectively.

"Seriously?" Wade sounded delighted.

"Yeah. Maybe we can bring Ronin back some time…I dunno. I guess I feel like I've been reborn in some ways."

"You were," Wade said, "I don't know if anyone told you this but you were dead for a few seconds."

"Yeah?"

"Yup."

"Hmmm" Ron almost sounded disappointed, "I didn't have any light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel experiences or nothing."

"Bummer," Wade sympathized, "Hey, you think maybe we should get moving?"

"In a minute," Ron assured him, "This could be my last morning as a free man. What am I saying, I'm already a fugitive."

He gazed out over the city, soaking in the quiet morning moments, knowing today was going to be a hectic day. And he supposed that might be putting it mildly. He breathed deeply the morning air again. It was time to get to work. He turned to get into the Ninjet.

"Wait", Wade said quickly, "Now that Ron has returned there's something I want him to do for me."

"What?"

"Just say it once." Wade insisted.

"Say what once…aw, Wade…no, man it's five in the morning, I'm on the roof of a hospital." Ron protested.

"Come on," Wade coaxed, "Just one time. You know you want to!"

Wade was right, he did want to. He drew his lungs full of air and prepared to let loose. It had always been his victory shout. But today, it would be his battle cry.

"BOOYAH!"

There was half a second of silence and then both of them burst out laughing. Ron couldn't remember the last time he really laughed. It was like taking off a heavy backpack after a hundred mile hike. He really did feel reborn.

Something suddenly occurred to Ron. For the past year, and especially right now, he had one friend in the world. The very thought made him suddenly emotional.

"Hey Wade," he said with conviction, "I know I've never said this to you, but thanks."

"For what?"

"Everything. Just everything." Ron began to tear up, "You're the only friend I have in the world right now. I mean, I wasn't even surprised when I saw the jet hovering outside my window this morning. I knew you'd be there for me. I…thanks."

"No problem" Wade said quietly, "But hey, before we start picking out a china pattern, why don't we go see if we can't take down Deathray?"

"Works for me" Ron said, climbing into the cockpit.

"Oh, and Ron?" Wade said quickly.

"Yeah?"

"Welcome back."

* * *

…_to join in wedded matrimony; this man, Ray Lourdes Beam…_

* * *

He normally didn't like to wake this early. But today was his wedding day after all. Maybe it was the excitement of his pending marriage. Or maybe he was still pumped from having pulled off the unthinkable. The authorities were going to pin Deathray on Stoppable. It was beautiful, just beautiful. Could he be more proud of himself? He didn't think so. 

He sat on the edge of the bed and rubbed his eyes. When he opened them again the room was glowing green. He turned to look at her and chuckled. She'd been doing that a lot lately; flaring up her fists in her sleep. He supposed it was like when dogs dream and their legs twitch involuntarily.

He got up, went into the bathroom and looked at himself in the mirror. Well, more to the point, he _admired_ himself in the mirror. This was not the face of a mere man. Other men were pathetic. They married plain women and had bratty kids and worked stupid jobs. But not Ray. Ray beam would have Kim Possible to decorate his arm, and an occasional slice of her arch foe on the side. And to top it all off, he would soon be the most feared and respected man in the world. But all in due time.

Yes, it almost came crashing down around him four days ago.

He remembered battling the twins at the fairgrounds. His cell phone rang; Kim's ring tone. He flew off at supersonic speed, leaving the twins to choke in his jet wash. Under other circumstances he would have let it go to voicemail, but he was a bit surprised to find the twins waiting for him at the fairgrounds. Something was up, and his fiancé might know what.

He was glad he took the call.

She was at Middleton Medical Center with an unconscious Stoppable, who, she informed him, was also Ronin. She'd gotten a call from an old friend who told her where the lair was. When she got there, she found Stoppable. Just wanted to call and let Ray know where she was. She'd call him later to tell him everything.

Well, that was it. The jig was up. Any minute Stoppable would wake up and tell her all about Deathray. And then everything he'd worked for, everything he'd planned would collapse. Furiously he cursed himself as he realized Stoppable had never actually left the lair. Probably slipped out of the tank and hidden somewhere nearby. This just made him hate Stoppable that much more for making him look so stupid. What an idiot Deathray must have looked like running up the ramp and out of the lair. He could alost hear Stoppable's laughter. But then he picked up that signal from the ninja's aircraft and took off after it. He was a little surprised to find it _inbound _but then he'd just assumed Stoppable had turned the craft around to taunt him or whatever. Deathray's evening was just one rookie move after another. It didn't occur to him until later to check around the tank for some kind of water trail, or take a quick look around the lair.

He got back to the lair to find Shego all shrugs and apologies. Had she seen anything?

Yes.

Well, what was it?

Stoppable lying in a heap out in the alley. She would have dragged him back in but Kim Possible pulled up.

Ray powered up the disintegrator. He knew she was lying. Kim had said she was in the lair.

"You told me not to reveal myself to Kim Possible until you said I could." Shego reminded him.

She was right. He _had_ told her that. He began to squeeze the trigger on the disintegrator anyway, when something caught his attention. There at the bottom of the ramp was the ninja's mask.

An idea began to take shape.

Ray called his fiancé and asked how Stoppable was doing.

Still unconscious.

They'd have to work fast. First thing he did was seal up the corridor leading to the cave. OK, so it wasn't a "cave" per se, but he couldn't think of something better to call a hollowed out chamber the size of a football stadium. So "cave" it was, but the important thing was to seal off that corridor – at both ends - and make that part of the lair look like a wall. From now on when they needed to get into the cave, they'd use the other entrance. This lair just became Ronin's secret hideout.

He erased every last bit of information in the computers and set Shego to work writing a fake journal or some kind of diary. It would probably take her most of the night to complete it. But if Stoppable was as bad off as it seemed, then maybe he wouldn't wake up for awhile.

Timing would be crucial, he had to wait right up until the moment Stoppable regained consciousness. That way it would be fresh in her mind. The longer Stoppable was out, the better.

The following day, Stoppable was still unconscious. He'd closed the huge corridor doors and had Shego weld it shut. The diary she'd written the previous night was lame, but it would suffice. He moved a bank of computers in front of the corridor doors and figured it looked enough like a wall. Then he had Shego weld the door at the other end of the corridor shut, and that was that.

Day three since Stoppable went to the hospital. It was time for some play-acting. He went to see Kim at the Medical Center.

"How's he doing?" He tried to put as much concern into his voice as he could.

"The same", she said, full of emotion. She obviously still had some feelings for Stoppable. Oh, he just wanted to throttle her right there!

"Listen, I want you to tell me exactly where you found that lair." He said quietly.

"Why?"

"Well, maybe we can get the police down there and check things out. The twins said Deathray flew away from Middleton at high speed. Maybe he's gone. No one's seen him since then."

"No", she decided, "It's too dangerous. You shouldn't go down there alone."

_**You** did! _His mind screamed.

"Of course," He pretended to think a moment, "What if the twins went with me? Chances are Deathray's gone, and if we can take a look at the place, then maybe we can find out where he went. Or even who he is."

"I don't know, Ray" she said doubtfully.

"Look, your brothers have all that equipment and stuff. We'll go down there and if there's any sign of Deathray at all, we'll get out fast. How's that sound?"

"Well…" again she doubted.

He kissed her forehead lovingly, "We'll go check it out, you stay here and watch after Ron. And you call me the minute he wakes up, alrighty?

She just nodded.

He asked her for directions to the lair and then called the twins. Everything was ready.

The trick was not to be the one to make the crucial discoveries. If the twins found this or that then it would seem as though Ray had nothing to do with any of it other than just being there when they uncovered everything. And it was exactly what happened. They found the lair, found the Deathray suit, and found that everything had been wiped from the computer memory except the journal.

"What do you think this means?" Ray asked them.

"I really don't know," Jim answered, "It's just been such a crazy week, first Ron's dead, now he's alive. First Ronin's dead, now he's Ron. But would he really pull this elaborate hoax just to win back my sister?"

"That just doesn't seem like the guy we worked with" Tim put in. "But then again, the guy we worked with didn't seem like Ron. Why would he erase all his computer files and leave what is easily the most incriminating evidence?"

"Maybe it was a guilty conscience," Jim said forlornly, "Maybe he finally got tired of living a lie."

_Ooh, good one,_ Ray thought to himself, _I didn't think of that angle._

"OK" Ray said aloud, "I think we should call your sister and have her come down here. See what she thinks of all this."

The twins wanted to check out the Deathray suit before doing so, but ultimately Ray convinced them to wait for Kim. It took some persuading, but she finally decided to come to the lair.

To Ray's delight, she took everything pretty hard. And when Jim wanted to check out the suit, Kim knew where the latch was, and thus she was the one who found Ronin's mask inside.

"I can't believe this was all some hoax!" She said, hurt and angry.

"But at the fairgrounds," Tim offered, "Deathray asked where Stoppable was, and actually made a point of saying Ronin was Ron Stoppable."

"And why would he drown himself if he's trying to impress Kim?" Jim asked.

Ray's mind raced frantically.

"Well", he suggested slowly, "Maybe impressing your sister wasn't his intended outcome. Kim, you said you got a frantic call from your computer friend, yes?"

Kim nodded.

"Maybe it's like Jim said earlier", Ray continued helpfully, but with as much sadness as he could put into his tone of voice, "He couldn't handle living a lie, and decided to end himself, leaving the journal as a sort of suicide note. Only your friend got wind of it and couldn't let Ron finish himself off."

Ray held his breath.

Kim nodded slowly, "I guess so."

Score! 

"Seven years ago," she continued, "I never would have believed it. But after this week…"

"Well, we can ask him about it when he wakes up", Ray said sympathetically, "But it sounds like Ron needs some professional help."

No one said anything for a bit.

"I promised his parents I'd be there when he woke up", Kim said, pushing back tears, "But we're getting married the day after tomorrow, and I could use a happy event in my life right now. For now let's call the authorities and tell them about this place, and we'll sort it all out with Ron when we get back from our honeymoon."

Smiling at himself in the mirror on the morning of his wedding, Ray thought just how perfectly Kim played into his hands. He thought again about what she had said.

_We'll sort it all out when we return from our honeymoon._

He chuckled to himself.

Of course, Kim didn't know it, but she wouldn't be returning from her honeymoon.

Ever.

* * *

…_to this woman, Kimberly Anne Possible._

* * *

Wedding days were supposed to be happy ones. Just a few hours left before the ceremony and her mind was in turmoil. 

Six years with no Ron in her life. Six years after he walked out of her hospital room, never to be seen again, he turns up dead, then alive, then seemingly insane. The worst part was, it all made a twisted sort of sense. The sort of sense she refused to believe right up until the moment she found Ronin's mask in Deathray's cockpit.

Ray helped to put it in perspective.

"I can certainly understand", he had said sympathetically, "I know what it's like to be so crazy about you it might make you do something crazy."

She didn't know what she'd do without Ray.

How could Ron do something like this? This wasn't the Ron she knew. But that day at the hospital six years ago, that wasn't the Ron she knew either. And who knows how much a person could change in six years? Kim knew she certainly was a different person. Once was a time when she was confident, strong, independent. But she wasn't the teen hero anymore. All that had changed. It's what happens when you grow up, she supposed. And something had certainly happened to Ron. Something inside him had snapped and caused him to make unthinkable decisions.

She remembered sitting in the treehouse ten years ago, telling him that they'd have to grow up some day.

_Maybe I don't want to grow up,_ was his response.

And maybe that was it. Maybe the pressures of becoming an adult had gotten to be too much for Ron Stoppable. He always had a childlike quality within him, and the world tended to try and eliminate such qualities in people. But when she thought about all her favorites books, her favorite movies, or even some of Ron's video games, it seemed the makers of all those things were adults who had healthy amounts of child-like qualities.

A very wise man had once written: "It is the stupidest of children who act childish, and the most tiresome of adults who act grown up."

Apparently Ron was unable to strike such a delicate balance. Favoring childhood over maturity, he constructed an elaborate hoax wherein he could pretend to be the superhero, and maybe rescue the girl. But it had all gone bad on him, and he tried to end his own life. Poor, deluded Ron.

Maybe in a way it was good they had a funeral for him. It seemed the Ron Stoppable she had grown up with, the Ron Stoppable she had fallen in love with and had once given her a promise of marriage…that Ron truly was dead. He was a shell of his former self now.

Kim pulled her wedding dress from her closet and gazed at it with a little sadness. Ray wasn't exactly the perfect guy; wasn't exactly what she would call a soul mate. But Ray represented emotional security and dependability. Ray was the marital choice an adult would make; not perfect, but at least he wasn't borderline insane.

Her thoughts turned to the phone call she had received an hour ago. Ron had escaped from the hospital, no doubt with Wade's help. She couldn't tell them where Wade lived, or where Ron was living these days. Who knows, maybe they were roommates?

So now, not only was she getting married today, but her wedding would probably be the first in the history of Middleton to have armed guards. Just the idea that she would have to have an armed security force in case Ron Stoppable tried to break up her wedding brought tears to her eyes. She pushed those thoughts away. She was determined to have the best wedding day she could under the circumstances.

Oh, but then she and Ray would leave for their honeymoon, and she felt so relieved at the idea of spending a week away from Middleton with her new husband. Maybe she'd ask Ray about moving away from Middleton. After all, she could conduct her research just about anywhere. Middleton had too may painful memories. She was sure she could come back for Christmas and things like that, but living here was getting to be too much. Time to move on; with everything in her life.

"Sweetheart?" Her mother was at the top of the stairs.

"Morning, mom," Kim said half-heartedly.

"Today's the big day," even her mother couldn't sound excited about it.

"Sure is." Kim agreed.

Kim's mother came over and put her arms around her daughter. "Everything will be OK, Sweetie."

"I know it will, Mom."

_I know it will._

* * *

_Marriage is a sacred union between two people, and is not to be entered into lightly. If anyone can show just cause why these two should not be joined together…_

* * *

The Ninjet hovered, hidden inside a cloud while they discussed a possible plan of action. 

"You're sure Deathray won't be able to track us up here?" Ron asked, just in case Ray decided to try to eliminate all the loose ends before his wedding.

"Oh yeah," Wade said a little sheepishly, "I've fixed that. Considering all the stealth capabilities of the Ninjet, I couldn't understand how he was able to track it. Then I realized he wasn't tracking the jet, he was tracking my transmissions. Because I pilot it by remote, there's a constant signal going to and coming from the jet. Basically it was like tracing a cell phone signal. I've sufficiently scrambled it now so it should be undetectable."

"OK", Ron acknowledged, "Now what do we know about Ray Beam?"

"I've pulled up every scrap of information I can on him, but there's nothing unusual. No criminal record, nothing." Wade replied.

"What about the Deathray suit? Where could he have gotten that?"

"There are several weapons firms in the world that deal in these kinds of things. Well, one less since you shut down that one near New Zealand. But of all the sites I hacked into, none of them carry a mechanized battlesuit quite like Deathray." Wade explained, "What if he built it himself?"

"I doubt it," Ron replied, "There didn't seem to be that kind of equipment in his lair. In fact the whole place looked sort of temporary."

"Doesn't Ray work at Dr. Possible's lab?" Wade asked.

Ron suddenly smacked his forehead with his open right hand.

"That wasn't me," Wade said defensively.

"I know. Listen, remember the manifest we found at the island warehouse?"

"Oh, man! 'Deathray, Middleton labs'!" Wade said, then smacked his own forehead.

"That wasn't me", Ron mocked.

"Focus, Ron! We didn't know Ray was Deathray at the time. When I searched the online networks of all the labs in Middleton, I didn't bother searching through Dr. Possible's because I assumed he couldn't possibly have anything to do with Deathray."

"And I still don't think he does" Ron stated, "But I'm willing to bet Ray's been working on a few secret projects even Dr. Possible doesn't know about. Search Dr. Possible's network, there should be some-"

"Got it!' Wade interrupted, "A manifest marked 'contents classified' was signed in at Dr. Possible's lab. The manifest number matches the one sent out from the New Zealand company."

"I need to get in to that lab" Ron declared.

"On it!" Wade said. The Ninjet went into a vertical dive.

This being both a Saturday, and Kim Possible's wedding day, the lab was – fortunately for Ron – closed, and practically deserted. One bored security guard was on patrol, but he was easily avoided.. The security systems proved to be a bit more tricky. Wade hacked into them easily enough, but soon discovered that if he shut them down entirely, a separate alarm would trigger and alert the authorities. So instead, Wade ordered the entire system to perform a self-diagnostic. This entailed shutting down the security measures for each room, one at a time. Ronin made his way to Dr. Possible's lab through the air vents and waited for Wade's signal.

"You know, I think half the world's security problems could be solved if they just shrank the air ducts down small enough so humans couldn't crawl through them." Ron observed.

"You know, today's the last day I would have picked for you to be in this kind of mood." Wade said.

"Yeah, I don't know what it is," Ron responded, "It just feels like everything's coming together!"

"Ten seconds," Wade said turning serious, "Stand by."

Ron waited patiently.

"Three…two…one. OK you've got ten minutes." Wade said.

Ron dropped through the air vent silently to the floor and took a look around.

"Scanning everything." Wade notified him.

Ron walked through the lab. The work stations were neat and tidy. There was nothing that looked even remotely suspicious.

"Anything?" Ron asked anxiously.

"Nothing that looks even remotely suspicious," Wade answered.

A few more minutes and they gained no new information. The security systems were about to come back on. Ron began to lose hope.

"Get back into the vent," Wade ordered him.

"No, that can't be it!" Ron protested, "There has to be something here!"

"Ron!" Wade shouted, "Get back into the vent!"

Ron reluctantly climbed back up into the air duct just before the security systems for that room re-engaged.

"Hmm" Wade said in his ear.

"What?" Ron asked hopefully.

"When the security diagnostic cycled to the next area, it skipped the room at the north end of the corridor. That one should have been next, but now that I look at it, there are no security systems in there at all. I can't see any discernible entryways but it does have a very high ceiling. It's separated from the rest of the lab by a six-foot-thick concrete wall."

"North end of the corridor?" Ron confirmed.

"Yeah." Wade answered, "There's no hallway or door to that room, but…"

"…the air ducts run straight to it." Ron finished his thought for him, "See what I was saying?"

Two minutes later, Ron dropped into the room, and found himself standing face to face with Deathray.

"Ron?" Wade asked after a moment of silence. "The suit's empty. I don't read any heat signatures inside."

Ron let out his breath slowly and looked around for the first time. His breath caught again when he spotted four more Deathray battlesuits standing in a perfect line.

"Spare battlesuits?" Ron asked.

"I guess," Wade answered, "Seems a little obsessive."

"This from the guy who made six Ronin outfits" Ron teased.

"Touché" Wade said sarcastically.

Ron moved about the room. The massive, motionless Deathrays, standing like grim sentinels in the darkened lab, creeped him out a little. On the far end of the room was an open door leading to another room.

"I'm gonna go check that out," Ron informed his partner.

He crept through the door and into the far room. This room was very dark, and very cold. Ron found a light switch.

After flipping the switch, Ron turned around to find:

"Ray!" he yelped.

Ray Beam was standing there, staring at…as best Ron could tell he was staring at something on the wall behind him. It was then Ron noticed that Ray was encased in some kind of cryogenic tube; he was being held in suspended animation.

"Scanning" Wade said without being asked. "The DNA is human, but I have no way to verify if it's him."

"What do you think?" Ron asked, not taking his eyes off Ray.

"Best guess?" Wade offered, "Probably a clone. What do you think?"

"I don't know", Ron said, "KP usually figures out these things."

"Usually?" Wade asked, amused.

"Hey, wow", Ron said, a little confused, "There hasn't been a 'usually' in like, six years. Where did that come from?"

Ron looked around the room.

"OK, Wade," he said "Theorize. What do you do with five extra Deathray suits and a clone?"

Ron moved down the center of the room, "No, wait, make that six clones. All of them Ray Beam."

"Good question," Wade speculated, "Villains usually don't use clones. Too unpredictable."

"How so?" Ron asked.

"When you clone someone," Wade explained, "All you can do is clone their physiological make-up; hair, skin, everything that's a body part, including the brain."

"Uh huh"

"But what you can't duplicate are things like emotions, intentions, moral beliefs, things like that. Often villains who use clones run into problems when the clones develop their own emotional responses and decide they'd rather not take over the world or whatever. That's why they often cross-clone them with some kind of vicious animal." Wade exposited.

"OK, so we're missing something here." Ron concluded.

"Step closer to that one, let me take a more in-depth scan." Wade told him.

Ron reluctantly did so. Standing this close to a zombified Ray Beam was giving him the serious willies.

"I'm reading a small metallic mass in the skull cavity, it looks like a sophisticated piece of electronic equipment. And apparently the brain has been removed." Wade said in a slightly horrified tone, "What do you make of that?"

"You're the genius in this partnership, you tell me!" Ron insisted.

Silence. Ron could sense Wade was thinking hard.

"I got nothin'." Wade said finally.

"That's my line" Ron protested. "You think it might have anything to do with Kim?"

"Wait a minute" Wade said quickly. Ron could hear him punching some buttons. "OK, Kim's been working on artificial brain technology. She's successfully been able to scan the brain of a lab rat onto an artificial brain. The problem is, she's never been able to get the electronic equipment that houses the artificial brain smaller than a telephone booth."

"Wade", Ron said quietly, "You know how you pilot the Ninjet via a transmitted signal? Could that same principle apply here?"

"That's IT!" Wade shouted, "Ron, you're a genius!"

"Yes!" Ron exclaimed, "Now let's pretend I have no idea why you just said that!"

"OK", Wade said, talking fast, "I'm reading here that Kim's lab has applied to the government for permission to begin human testing on her artificial brain technology. What if she's already done an unofficial scan on a human brain?"

"Not following." Ron said dully.

"If you could somehow implant a signal receiver that attached to the human spinal column inside the skull cavity of a clone, then you wouldn't need to shrink the brain down to the size of a human head. The artificial brain could stay in one place and transmit signals to the receiver. Any signals; from the regulation of the heart and other bodily functions, to higher levels of thought. All of it could be transmitted to the receiver and the body would respond as though it had a brain in its head."

"But in this case," Ron said catching on "All these receivers are going to be getting a signal from just one artificial brain! Ray's! A private army getting its marching orders from one single mind! Combine that with the Deathray suits and you've got the makings of a plot to take over the world!"

"I think we've got what we came to-" Ron said turning toward the door, and then stopped.

His eye caught something in a dark corner. He walked over there, dreading what he would find, but already knowing. There, in that dark corner, encased in a cryogenic tube, was the vacant-eyed clone of Kim Possible.

"Wade" Ron whispered, terrified, "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"You start, I'll finish," Wade said. He sounded as shocked as Ron felt.

"If Ray had two artificial brains, and one of them had Kim's brain scan on it. He could tweak with the information in Kim's artificial mind. Eliminate Kim's penchant for helping people, increase her desire to do evil, things like that!" Ron said in breathless horror.

"He could find and delete all references and memories of Ron Stoppable," Wade said, "So he goes off on his honeymoon with Kim…comes home alone…and activates the Kim clone without anyone suspecting a thing."

"And all the world sees is a Kim Possible who decides she likes being evil and wants to help her new husband take over the world." Ron finished. "Tell me you're recording all this."

"Of course." Wade confirmed.

"I wonder what Shego's part is in this?" Ron asked aloud.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" came a familiar voice.

Run spun around to see Shego lunging at him, her fists blazing green. He quickly stepped aside and Shego went sprawling, but quickly recovered.

"We don't have time for this" Wade informed him, "We've got to break up a wedding!"

Shego lunged again, hurling green energy at Ron. He vaulted over the cryogenic tubes.

"I'm open to suggestions!" Ron said quickly.

"How much you wanna bet her mysterious green glow is nothing more than unfocused kinetic energy?" Wade asked.

"Risky bet." Ron observed.

"I'm willing." Wade offered.

"You're not wearing the suit." Ron countered.

"Just do it, Ron."

Ron slipped around a corner to find he had flanked Shego; she was facing away from him.

"Hey, babycakes!' He said casually.

Enraged, Shego spun and blasted Ron with a burst of energy.

Nothing.

Shego advanced upon him, blasting him with every step she took.

Ron pretended to yawn.

Screaming with fury, Shego unleashed the full might of her blazing green energy on Ron, hammering him with blast after blast.

Ron found an old newspaper nearby. He picked it up and pretended to read it.

"OK" Shego said, angry and out of breath, "I get it. Your suit is designed to absorb energy."

"Absorb…"

Ron turned toward her.

"Store…"

He stretched his arms toward her and flicked his wrists.

"…and discharge!"

Shego took the full blast of her own energy at almost point blank range. She sailed through the air across the lab and crashed into a huge pile of Deathray equipment waiting to be assembled. Some of it toppled down upon her, pinning her underneath.

Ron left an angry, shouting Shego behind and hoisted himself up into the air vent.

A minute later, Ron was flattened against the back of the cockpit as the Ninjet streaked its way into the sky.

The wedding ceremony was just getting underway.

* * *

…_let him speak now, or forever hold his peace._

* * *

The cockpit slid open and a cloaked Ron stood up, then allowed Wade to drop the Ninjet out from underneath him. He flattened out, tucked his arms by his sides, and put his legs together straight out behind him. 

The Ninjet banked hard and flew off into the distance; a black blur against a blue sky.

Wade had said the church would be heavily guarded, but Ron didn't have much choice. In a matter of moments, she would be Ray's wife, and they would be on their way to their honeymoon. Wade had hacked into the files of a local print shop where the invitations had been printed. At the very bottom was a note:

_Mr. and Mrs. Ray Beam will be departing for their honeymoon immediately following the ceremony. They cordially invite you to attend a reception the day after their return._

Ray had thought of everything.

There were guards everywhere. Global Justice had brought in helicopters with sophisticated tracking equipment. They couldn't spot Ron while he was cloaked, but he practically lit up their instruments when he pulled the chute. Every GJ agent, every private security guard, every cop in the vicinity converged on his position.

Ron landed two blocks from the church and began sprinting toward it. A wall of guards and agents rose up to meet him. He vaulted over the first row of guards and continued onward. Two helicopters swooped low and launched nets with weights attached.

They were serious about bringing him in.

Ron dodged the nets, panicked, and began to run back up the street, away from the church.

"Wade, it's too thick down here, we're gonna have to think of another approach."

No response.

"Wade! I need the jet down here, now!" Ron sounded frantic.

Still no response.

Ron looked wildly about, trying to spot the Ninjet. He couldn't see it at all. He turned and looked behind him. Global Justice agents were gaining on him.

_No!_ his mind screamed in a blind panic, _I can't go down like this!_

He ducked up a driveway and ran through the space between two houses.

But they had anticipated this.

Two burly guards tackled Ron and dragged him to the ground.

"Wade!" Ron had the wind knocked out of him, he was trying to catch his breath, "Wade! Answer me! Can you hear me?"

An abstract thought occurred to him. It was possible Global Justice might be using communications jamming devices.

He struggled against his captors, but too many strong arms prevented him from moving.

"Wade!" he pleaded.

Ron was handcuffed and dragged to a waiting car.

"Wade!"

The car sped off, barely allowing time for the door close after Ron was shoved inside.

"No! You can't do this!" Ron practically screamed, "You don't understand! Kim's life is in danger! No! Please STOP THE CAR!"

Ron Stoppable was hauled away.

* * *

The minister was just getting to the part Kim dreaded hearing. She closed her eyes. She had heard a commotion outside just a few minutes ago and somehow knew it had to be Ron, but then the commotion seemed to move away, down the street. Things began to quiet down again. Her heart just ached for Ron. It was so sad how her best friend had become such a sorry existence. Again, she swallowed her tears. 

"If anyone can show just cause why these two should not be joined together", the minister spoke placidly, "Let him speak now or forever hold his peace."

Then the minister paused.

Kim squeezed her eyes shut.

"Ray!" came a timid and breathless shout from the back of the sanctuary, "I need to borrow your cell phone!"

Mortified, Kim turned around and looked down the aisle to the source of the voice that had just spoken.

"Wade?"


	12. Chapter 11

My thanks as always to all who are reading.

Special thanks to: Jezriana2.0, gargoylesama , Kimberly Ann Possible, Ari-Griffin, Spooks-A-Lot, Jokerisdaking, Willk 1989, KitsuneAkurei, BluJae, RainingInsanity, Sestren NK, EmotionallyAttached, LKillingsworth, oneredneckgoddess, JPMod, ps2teen1213, recon228, kimnronever, Tanya16, Fuzzie Muzzie, knuckz, Daeron Blackoak, zebraFinch, Widow Shark, Dagon ng Likha, Loo'd, Sportsman, and sehnsucht792.

Just a reminder, this story will end; there are two chapters left after this one, plus an epilogue.

Now where were we? Ah yes: "Let him speak now…"

* * *

Chapter 11

Global Justice Agents, private security guards, and police officers.

Oh my.

Wade knew the second Ron bailed out of the Ninjet that he probably wouldn't make it into the church. He probably wouldn't make it to within a block of the church.

Oh, man! Were those Global Justice helicopters? These guys were serious!

Ron was _definitely_ not going to make it, and Wade didn't think the interface would be much help.

Then something occurred to him. He pulled up the recording of the sonar scan from the night Ron almost drowned and watched very closely what happened after he had cloaked Ron.

He checked his cameras. Ron was about to reach the ground and it looked as though they were already tracking him. Without wasting time trying to explain to Ron, Wade raced from his basement command center – as he liked to call it – out to the front lawn. The Ninjet was just coming to a hover near the driveway.

"Wade!" he heard his mother's voice behind him, "Are you actually leaving this house?"

"No time to explain, Mom!" he called over his shoulder. Besides he was twenty years old after all, couldn't he leave when he wanted to?

"You don't know how happy this makes me!" she called to him just before the cockpit slid closed.

Wade had already programmed in the coordinates which transmitted them to the Ninjet. The aircraft took off like a bullet.

"WHOOOOOAAAAAAAAAA!" Wade practically screamed as he was flattened against the back of the seat. Was this the terrifying experience Ron had to deal with every time he flew?

He took a low approach to the church, zooming the cameras in on the guards, agents and police officers. They were two blocks away from the church, moving en masse in the opposite direction. Ron was leading them away, almost as if he knew what was going on.

Then a horrible thought occurred to Wade. He'd forgotten about communications. Right now he had no way of telling Ron what he was doing or where he was. Wade felt a pang of guilt as he imagined Ron trying to contact him with no answer. Wade was definitely _not_ ready for field work. Deal with that later.

The Ninjet came in at an alarming rate of speed and slowed down at the last possible second, settling on the lawn out in front of the church. Not a single guard was in sight. The cockpit slid open and Wade rushed inside.

"…to this woman, Kimberly Anne Possible," The minister was saying, "Marriage is a sacred union between two people, and is not to be entered into lightly."

Wade, frightened out of his mind, screwed up his courage and stepped forward, stopping at the last row of seats.

"If anyone can show just cause" the minister continued, "As to why these two should not be joined together. Let him speak now, or forever hold his peace."

Wade's heart pounded, sweat poured down his forehead. He cleared his throat and tried to sound authoritative, "Ray, I need to borrow your cell phone."

Every single head in the sanctuary turned to look at him. Wade felt like he wanted to crawl into a hole and hide there forever.

"Wade?" Kim squeaked.

"I beg your pardon, young man?" The minister inquired.

Wade's mouth was suddenly parched. The tension in the church had instantly become so thick it was almost tangible.

"I need to borrow Ray's cell phone" Wade continued haltingly, "This will only take a minute."

The look on Ray's face was almost comical. That is to say, his face was blank. Not angry, or bemused, or any number of emotions that one might be feeling when a stranger bursts in on your wedding and asks to use your phone.

Wade knew that if he had burst into the church shouting something idiotic like "Stop this wedding!", people would have gotten up and escorted him out. But the words he had chosen were having their desired effect on everyone. It was such an odd thing to say, no one quite knew what they should be doing about it.

Kim simply stood, staring.

Wade boosted his courage and walked forward a few paces. "Come on, Ray, let's have the phone. I know – I just _know_ – you're actually dumb enough to have it on you. Let's have it."

Ray finally found his voice, "I'm sorry, who are you and why are you disrupting my wedding?"

"My name's Wade. You may know my friend Ron Stoppable? He's the guy who's probably being hauled off to jail at this very moment because everyone thinks he's Deathray." Wade tried his best not to stumble through his speech, but he wasn't used to speaking in public, much less _being _out in it.

"I think you better leave," Ray said, an edge creeping into his voice.

Kim continued to stand, gazing back and forth from Wade to Ray, but saying nothing.

"Tell you what, Ray" Wade said, "Just take out your phone and punch in the numbers seven, two, and nine. Do that for me and then I'll leave."

Ray turned visibly pale.

"This is absurd," Ray said unconvincingly.

"Just do it," Wade insisted, "And I'll leave. I give you my word."

A few seconds of intense silence, and then Kim finally spoke.

"Just do it, Ray," Kim said, clearly very annoyed, "And we can get on with this."

Ray glared at her, then looked back to Wade, then at everyone in the church. He found that all eyes had turned to him, expectantly.

The twins were standing next to Ray as the part of the groom's party. Both of them were giving Ray an odd look.

"Ray", Kim's eyes were insistent.

"Why has this turned on me? I'm not the one who burst in on a wedding." Ray sounded very testy.

"Because", Jim said quietly, "When someone you've known for ten years…"

"Someone who is supposed to be the guy who piloted Deathray and should be avoiding public sightings at all costs…" Tim put in.

"When that someone comes out of his room possibly for the first time ever, and asks to borrow your cell phone. Then I can't help wondering why you don't just do as he asks," said Jim.

"Especially when he says he'll leave once you do." Tim finished.

Silence. All eyes continued to look to Ray.

"OK" Ray growled, Fine!"

Muttering, he yanked his phone out of his pocket, punched three buttons and then looked at Wade.

Nothing seemed to be happening. Someone in the church coughed twice.

"All right?" he said, glaring at Wade, "Can we put this nonsense behind us now?"

"Oh my," came a voice, "I'm afraid you misdialed, son."

All eyes turned to the minister.

"I noticed you pushed seven, two, eight, and I believe the young man was asking for seven, two, nine." He said placidly to Ray.

Ray's jaw dropped. Things seemed to have taken a turn for the surreal.

"You see," the minister said, holding out his hand to Ray, "The words 'speak now or forever hold your peace' are a traditional part of the wedding ceremony, much like, say, the wedding march."

Ray's jaw worked but he couldn't think of anything to say.

"But as is the case with all traditions, there once was a good reason for having such a phrase in the ceremony," the minister casually leaned forward and took the cell phone from Ray's hand, "And there once was a time when the congregation of a church was bound by duty to investigate any challenges to potential marriages."

Kim was listening intently, but it wasn't clear to anyone what she was thinking.

"So it strikes me as odd, that this young man has chosen this precise moment to ask such a seemingly absurd question." The minister turned to look at Wade, "And when I look at him, I see a frightened young person who looks as though he would rather be anywhere else but here. Very interesting, don't you think?"

Ray just stared at him dumbfounded.

"But what really interests me, is that you dialed the wrong number, but then acted as though you had done what this young man asked of you, when clearly you did not." There seemed to be no emotion in the minister's voice at all, "Now, either you made an honest mistake, in which case it is easily corrected, or you deliberately attempted to deceive everyone. And I think all things can be put in their proper place."

And with that, the minister held up the phone and pushed seven, two, and nine.

Silence.

Ray was holding his breath.

"Kim" Wade spoke up again. He walked toward Kim holding his hands outward, "I want you to see that I have no electronic devices of any kind with me. There is no way I could be piloting anything via remote control right now. You must believe me when I tell you this!"

The twins' eyes narrowed and looked at Ray.

Two guards burst through the front doors, leaving them open. From outside, a dull rumble slowly began to build in volume; the sound like a jet from a distance.

Kim looked all about the congregation, confusion playing across her face. She then returned her gaze to Ray.

The roar quickly got louder and louder until finally – with a thundering crash – Deathray smashed through the ceiling, scattering debris in all directions.

With screaming and shouting, people retreated from the front of the church as Deathray settled to a landing just five feet from where Ray was standing. The hatch opened, and two mechanical arms snaked out, took hold of Ray, and hauled him inside, closing the hatch afterward.

The GJ Guards at the back of the church spoke into their radios. Helicopters could be heard approaching.

Panic erupted. Only the twins, Kim, Wade, Ray and the minister remained where they were.

Standing that close to the machine when it landed, both Jim and Tim heard a voice coming from inside when the cockpit hatch opened. It was a female voice, and it was obviously being transmitted over some kind of communication device. They only heard a few words.

"Ray?", it said, "Ray, I'm getting a signal from Deathray One. Are you in there? I thought it was at the police impound lo-"

The voice was cut off when the hatch closed.

The twins had no idea who was on the other end of that transmission, but the unknown person was talking as though she _expected_ Ray to be in the cockpit of the massive mechanical suit.

"Ray…" Tim said

"…is Deathray", Jim finished.

Tim began speaking into his wristwatch.

* * *

Ron stared helplessly out the rear window. He'd given up his protests when he saw the thick glass between him and the two GJ agents sitting up front. They clearly couldn't hear him.

Wade had never answered his pleas for help so he gave up trying. What was the use now? Soon Kim would be… even now he couldn't bear the thought. It was like the sun had gone dark. That day had started out so promising. He began to think that people would see his evidence of the clones and the extra Deathray suits as falsified; like seemingly everything else in his life.

The car turned a corner and Ron slumped despondently in the back seat. Briefly he thought about calling the now confiscated Lotus Blade to him. Could it rip through a car roof? Or crash through a window?

And what then? Fight his way through GJ to get back to the church? He couldn't make it from two blocks away. What did he hope to accomplish from this far out? Was it worth serious injury or the loss of the lives of a couple of innocent agents to get to Kim? Obviously not. Ron would not willfully take a life for any reason. If he had to kill a couple of agents to get to Kim, then he wouldn't do it. Not now, not ever.

Suddenly a roar overhead, like the sound of a low flying jet fighter. The two agents sitting up front peered into the sky, trying to determine the source of the noise.

A moment later, one of them leaned forward and picked up the radio. He spoke into it briefly and then seemed to listen. The two agents looked at each other, and the passenger nodded to the driver.

Unexpectedly the car lurched as the brakes were forcefully engaged. The driver spun the steering wheel to the left and the back end of the car slid around, accompanied by the sound of screeching tires. Three quarters of the way through the turn, the driver stomped down on the accelerator. Tires screeched louder as the back of the car slid slightly to the right, and then straightened out. They were headed back toward the church.

The glass between Ron and the driver slowly slid downward.

"Mr. Stoppable," the agent in the passenger seat said, half turning toward the rear of the car, "We just got word from two plain-clothes agents inside the church that Deathray broke in and somehow pulled the groom into the cockpit."

"Yes!" Ron exclaimed leaning forward eagerly, "That's him! Raymond Beam is Deathray!"

"We've confirmed that. We're on our way back to the church now. Our agents are asking for your assistance in Deathray's apprehension." The passenger replied.

Ron sank back into the seat. Whatever else was about to happen, at least the real Deathray had been exposed. Ron wondered what Kim must be thinking right now.

"Will you assist us, Mr. Stoppable?" The agent looked at him expectantly.

"Yes!" Ron said fiercely, "Of course I will!"

"Affirmative!" the agent said into the radio, "We should be there in less than sixty seconds!"

Out of place curiosity popped into Ron's head, "Did the agents ask for me by name?"

"That's affirmative", the passenger said.

"Who was it?" Ron persisted.

The agents looked at each other and the driver nodded to the passenger.

"Agents James and Timothy Possible."

"The twins are Global Justice agents?"

"They're what we call Deep Field Operatives. They have almost complete autonomy and are assigned to various missions of what you might call an extraordinary nature. I think you can guess the kind of missions I mean. In return for their efforts, Global Justice keeps them well funded and well equipped."

"Wow, that's so coo-" Ron was cut off by the car screeching to a halt.

The driver got out and opened Ron's door.

"I had a sword with me," Ron stated, "I'm gonna need it."

"Here!" hollered an agent some fifty feet away. He held up the Lotus Blade.

Ron turned toward the church, holding up his hand. The sword sailed through the air and into his grasp.

"I'm going to try and find a way to draw him out!" Ron said to the nearest agent while pulling on his mask, "I think that'll be easier than trying to evacuate everyone from the church."

The agent spoke into his radio and two helicopters moved in, ready to ensnare the mechanical suit and its occupant.

Ron hurried inside.

* * *

Ray's mind was racing. He was good at planning things, but improvisation was not one of his skills.

Everything was falling apart. He had no idea who the kid was who demanded to use his phone. He heard Kim call him 'Wade' but it was still a minute or two before he put the pieces together. Ronin's computer guy, the same one that used to be part of Team Possible, had figured out how his phone worked. How on earth did he know the code?

Ray cursed himself vehemently for bringing his cell phone with him. It didn't even occur to him _not _to put it in his tux pocket. It was a deeply ingrained habit that had come back to bite him. And the absolute last thing he expected was the minister to take his phone. How do you account for variables like that? He had no choice but to give the phone over to the man. What else was he going to do? Punch the guy? That might have given away his evil secret identity right there.

All of this passed quickly through Ray's mind as he sat in the cockpit trying to figure out what to do next.

Then, an idea, "Uh…Help! Somebody! Kim! Deathray has me!"

"Sorry, Ray, no dice!" he heard Jim say.

"We know you're Deathray," Tim continued, "Surrender now. It's over."

Gasps could be heard from the Possible family and a few of their friends.

Rage began to boil up. He was this close! This close to having everything he wanted!

He looked down at his almost bride. She was staring at him, but not saying anything. She looked confused.

Maybe his plans weren't completely defeated.

The hatch opened and the two mechanical arms snaked their way out toward Kim. She continued to look at him, unmoving. Suddenly, a succession of sounds:

_WhooshwhooshwhooshwhooshTHUNKwhooshwhooshTHUNKwhooshwhooshTHWACK!_

The ends of the mechanical arms were suddenly turned into mechanical stumps with protruding wires and showering sparks. In the wall to Ray's right, a battleaxe was embedded, its handle still quivering from the throw. The ends of the severed arms lay on the floor. Ray watched, oddly fascinated, as the axe changed into a sword and sailed through the air to-

"Stoppable!" he bellowed.

Ron stood at the far end of the sanctuary, his hand raised to receive the flying blade.

Purely reactionary; Ray powered up the disintegrator, set his sights on the computer kid, and fired.

Ron seemed to move faster than humanly possible. Suddenly there he was, standing in front of the kid with a shield. The force of the disintegrator beam drove them backward, but Ron managed to keep the shield in place.

"Stop this abomination at once!" The minister's voice could barely be heard above the hum of the weapon.

Remembering where he was, Ray suddenly released the trigger. If there were any doubts about him being Deathray, he'd just put them to rest. Maybe it was time to-

_KCHUNK!_

Sparks flew as the axe buried itself in the disintegrator, rendering the weapon inoperable. The axe changed, flew back to Stoppable, and before Ray could react, flew at him in the form of an axe again.

_WHUNK!_

This time striking in the midsection of the suit. Backup systems began to short out, sparks erupted in the cockpit.

_WHUNK!_

The blow drove him back a couple of steps.

Again and again the battleaxe flew through the air. Again and again, it hit Deathray with increasing force. The Lotus Blade began to glow white, and got brighter with every throw. Whatever force was behind each hurl of the axe, it was more than mere human strength.

Ray began to experience something he hadn't felt in a long time.

Fear.

He looked down to check his thruster systems were still operable. They were, but barely. He flipped a couple of switches and-

_WHAM!_

The axe hit Deathray with the force of a freight train. The mechanical suit was knocked off its feet and crashed into the near wall of the church. Ray blinked to see the axe blade less than six inches from his face. It had found the cockpit as its target. Blind panic took over. Ray struggled to get the machine to its feet. The axe turned into a sword and wrenched itself free of Deathray's windscreen. Ray ignited the thrusters and thundered out of the church, smashing his way through the roof. Global Justice helicopters took off in pursuit.

* * *

Ron stood staring, as the sword came back to his grasp sheathed in a white-hot glow. His arm tingled as it came near. Deathray crashed upward through the roof, and the blade, sensing it was no longer needed for the time being, instantly ceased glowing.

Ron's first instinct was to check on whoever it was Deathray had fired upon. He got the shock of his life.

"Wade?"

"Hey Ron", Wade said sheepishly, "Sorry about the lack of communication back there."

"What happened? How did you get here?"

"I had the jet come pick me up as soon as you bailed out. Figured you could use some backup." Wade said grinning, "Only I forgot to bring anything to communicate with you. Guess I'm not ready for field work yet, huh?"

Ron helped him to his feet. Perhaps for the first time ever, the two partners shook hands.

"Dude, if you're the one who exposed Deathray, then you are way ready for field work." He paused, looking up the aisle at Kim, "Hold up a sec, I need to check on someone."

She looked to be all right. No outward harm seemed to have been done to her. She looked completely miserable… and utterly beautiful.

Ron took a step toward her, she collapsed in a heap of tears and sobbing. Her parents rushed to her.

Noise and general commotion began to grow as people came out from cover. The whole incident had taken place over the course of just a few minutes, though it seemed as if it had stretched on for hours. The twins began to give orders to GJ agents. Emergency vehicles were called in to treat the injured. Thankfully, no one was seriously hurt.

Kim became hysterical. She was taken away in an ambulance for observation at MMC.

Wade met and shook hands with Jim and Tim, and told them briefly the information he'd come across regarding the cell phone.

"But how did you know the code?" Tim asked.

"Educated guess" Wade said with a grin, "An egomaniac like that with a three-button code? I figured it had to be seven, two, nine. Or R-A-Y on the telephone key pad."

They shared a laugh and congratulated Wade on his bravery and resourcefulness. After while, Wade began to feel a little overwhelmed by the crowd and the excitement. He quietly slipped away and flew back home.

Ron on the other hand was enjoying the human contact. He got the entire story of Wade's dramatic entrance from the twins.

Perhaps to no one's surprise, reports came back that Deathray had eluded pursuit, and disappeared. Global Justice put Middleton on full alert, and stood ready to move in at the slightest sign of Deathray.

Ron took the opportunity to have a heart-to-heart with the twins, apologizing for faking his death, and any hurt he may have caused them. Naturally, they were forgiving, and the three of them were soon chattering away about some of the missions they had taken part in with Ronin. The twins were surprised to find themselves a little in awe of Ron, considering his combat skills and prowess with the Lotus Blade.

Some time later, they took Ron back to GJ Headquarters for a full debriefing. He told them everything he knew about Deathray, including the discoveries at Dr. Possible's lab complex. Global Justice set up a surveillance operation around the lab, but decided not to move in figuring Deathray might come back for his spare suits and the clones. If he did, that's when they'd get him.

Ron accompanied the twins back to the Possible house. It was a very eerie feeling being back in such familiar surroundings. It hadn't changed much, though it seemed a little smaller to him now. Kim was upstairs, heavily sedated. Her mental condition seemed to be deteriorating by the hour.

Once again, Ron poured his heart out to the Doctors Possible, begging their forgiveness for what he'd done. They accepted his apology, and though they were glad to have a reconciliation of sorts with Ron, they were still trying to deal with the shock about Ray. Dr. Possible took it very hard, blaming himself in some ways because he had hired Ray at the lab in the first place. Since he'd gone into semi-retirement, he had no idea of what was happening at his own lab. And to think of what this monster might have done to his daughter… Dr. James possible didn't sleep very well for quite some time after that.

Afternoon began to deepen into evening, and Ron excused himself from the Possible household. He figured it was time to go see his parents. He went upstairs to check on Kim, and found her in a deep but clearly troubled sleep. Worry and angst were stamped across her face.

He decided to walk to his parents house, so he could compose this thoughts. He didn't relish the idea of spilling everything to his parents, but his two previous confessions that day had a cathartic effect on him. He felt increasingly unburdened.

There was a sort of tension in the air over Middleton. He could hear helicopters on patrol in the distance. The entire town seemed to be on edge. Ron set those feelings aside and looked around him. He suddenly felt self-conscious walking through his old block dressed as a ninja. Some of the houses and landscaping had changed over the years, but it was still the same old neighborhood. Memories of a better time came flooding into his mind; the first summer after graduation, the night of the prom…and that last week of school; the week of final exams.

* * *

"I'm never going to pass my Geometry final!" Ron wailed miserably, "Which means I'm not going to graduate which means I won't go to college-"

"Unplug the drama generator, Ron" Kim said, "You can do this, you just have to study harder."

"But that's the problem! It's gotten way harder to study since we started dating!" Ron pointed an accusatory finger at her, "This is your fault!"

"How is this my fault?" she protested.

"You never were a distraction before," Ron whined, "Now I can't concentrate with you in the room!"

"You could always go home and study there." She offered innocently.

"Uh, Hello!" Ron said as if stating the obvious, "That would be worse! I'd just spend the whole time wishing I was here, thank you."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Kim said with a grin.

"Well, DUH!" Ron said, again is if stating the obvious.

Ron's backpack rustled and moved. Out scampered Rufus. He rubbed his stomach and groaned.

"Naco!" Rufus whined.

"Sorry, buddy," Ron said sympathetically, "Bueno Nacho's still closed. Maybe we can get a pizza!"

Rufus chattered excitedly, "Pizza!"

They both looked at Kim hopefully.

"Oh, all right," she said, rolling her eyes, "But we're hitting the books when we get back. Deal?"

"Sweet!" Ron exclaimed, and off they went.

Halfway through their meal, the Kimunicator beeped.

"What's the sitch, Wade?" Kim asked.

"Got a hit on the site from a company called Intellicorp. Their top secret research facility was broken into last night, and they're asking for your help." Wade informed her, "I've got some security footage. Wanna see it?"

"Please and thank you," Kim answered.

On the tiny screen appeared the black and white image of what looked like an electronics lab.

"Why do these companies always get the cheap black and white security cams? You'd think they could afford color." Ron observed.

"Sssshhh, Ron!" Kim whispered.

The footage showed several figures, one of which approached the camera and covered the lens with his hand, blacking out the image. Noises could be heard, some of which sounded like stuff breaking.

Then finally, a voice, "Do you HAVE IT?"

"Got it right here, boss." Came an answer.

"Then let us get out of here, BEFORE SOMEONE **_CALLS THE POLICE!"_** said the first voice, bellowing by the end of the sentence.

"Dementor!" Kim exclaimed.

The hand came away from the security cam, but no one could be seen.

"So what did he steal?" Ron asked.

"A device called the Smart Collar," Wade answered, "It's still in the experimental stages. You wear it around your neck and it radiates a small amount of energy into the brain. This has the effect of boosting things like memory and intelligence for whoever is wearing it."

"Hmmm" Ron said, a sly look on his face.

"Ron," Kim said, reading his mind, "You're not going to use that thing to help you pass your geometry final tomorrow!"

"Awww," Ron said dejectedly.

"Anyway," Wade continued, "I figure we should get the collar back as soon as possible, otherwise he's gonna use it to dream up all new ways to take over the world."

"Wade, is Dementor still residing in that monstrosity of Greek architecture he calls a lair?" Kim asked.

"Yep" Wade answered, "Got a ride all set up."

"He never changes lairs." Ron observed, "You gotta give the man points for consistency."

One hypersonic jet ride later, Team Possible parachuted into Dementor's compound. It was late at night, everyone seemed to be sleeping. They took the usual steps to avoid the alarms and booby-traps and – as is dictated by villain tradition – found the collar sitting on a pedestal in the center of the main hall with a solitary spotlight shining on it.

With a tiny cable and harness, they lowered Rufus from the balcony that ran the length of the hall. The rodent dangled, suspended above the pedestal, and examined the collar. Wade had been unable to detect any alarms or security systems. Deciding there was nothing else he could do, Rufus simply snatched the collar.

No alarms.

Ron was in the process of reeling Rufus back in when suddenly all the lights went on. Henchmen appeared as if from nowhere, and Professor Dementor was suddenly standing on the balcony on the other side of the hall.

"Looking for THIS?" He held up an identical looking collar, "I have defeated your plans with a DUPLICATE!"

"Whoa! Wait just a minute…time out!" Ron said, crossing his hands in a 'T' formation. "You switched the real collar for a synthetic version and instead of letting us walk away with the fake, you barge in to gloat about it?"

"What's your point?" Dementor inquired.

"Well, I mean, for a guy who's in possession of a Smart Collar…" Ron began.

"You gotta admit, that was a pretty dumb thing to do." Kim finished.

You could almost see the steam shooting from Dementor's ears.

"GET THEM!" he ordered his henchmen.

Kim sprang into action, "Get the collar!" she called to Ron.

"All over it, KP!" Ron said. He took out a grappler and fired it in the general direction of Dementor. The hook sailed through the air and buried itself in the wall, just barely missing Dementor's head.

"Do you know you could HAVE PUT **_MY EYE OUT?"_** Dementor demanded.

Ron hit the recoil button and was yanked off his feet. He sailed through the air toward the opposite balcony, squealing the whole way over. Letting go of the grappler too late, Ron smacked into the wall.

"Ow!" He got up, rubbing his elbow, "That smarts!"

"How dare you make a pun IN MY PRESENCE!" Dementor raged.

"All right, Dementor!" Ron said, taking on a serious tone, "Hand over the collar and tell me what an Isosceles Triangle is."

"The answer to your first demand is 'no!'" Dementor shouted, "and the answer to your second demand is: it's a triangle with two sides OF EQUAL LENGTH, **_EVERYONE KNOWS THAT!"_**

"Ron!" Kim called up whilst battling henchmen, "Stop asking an arch foe to help with your geometry studies and get the collar!"

"One sec, KP" Ron said, writing the information down, "Two…sides…equal…length, got it. OK, now what is Pythagorean's Theorem?"

"Ron!" Kim shouted.

"OK, OK" Ron said rolling his eyes, "I'll get the stupid collar…er… I mean, Smart Collar! Go Rufus!"

Rufus hopped from Ron to Dementor and scampered down the front of his shirt. Dementor collapsed on the floor into uncontrollable giggling.

"NO!" shouted Dementor through fits of laughter, "Tickling is my fatal WEAKNESS!"

"Good to know, dude," Ron said, grabbing the collar, "Got it, Kim!"

"Great!", Kim pushed a button on her shoulder strap and a rocket pack and helmet emerged from her backpack. She ignited the rockets, swooped in to pick up Ron, and flew them both to safety.

They were too late to do any real studying when they got back to Middleton, so they kissed good night and each went to their respective homes. They would make arrangements to return the collar to Intellicorp in a few days. In the meantime, Ron volunteered to hold the collar for safekeeping.

The next day, Rongot an 'A' on his Geometry final.

When they got their tests back, Kim gave him a suspicious look and asked Ron if he was wearing the collar during the test. He emphatically told her 'no'.

That afternoon, Ron was called into Barkin's office.

"Stoppable!" he said in his most serious tone, "I have been informed that you used a device to assist you when you took your Geometry exam. Just thought you should know I'm giving you an 'F' on the exam. I'm sorry, son, but you won't be able to graduate."

Ron protested, but Barking told him his information had come from an unimpeachable source. Ron had a pretty good idea who it was.

"Why did you tell Barkin I cheated on the exam?" Ron demanded.

"Ron, I know you have the collar in your backpack, and I know you aced the exam," Kim explained, "It's not too hard to put two and two together. Frankly, I'm upset because you lied to me."

"I didn't lie, and I didn't cheat either!" Ron shouted. He turned and stomped away.

Kim watched him with a worried look on her face. She pulled out the Kimunicator.

"What's up, Kim?" Wade asked.

"Wade, is there any way to scan the Smart Collar and tell if someone's been wearing it?" Kim asked.

"Ron aced his Geometry exam?" Wade guessed.

"Yeah, but he says he didn't wear the collar, and now I'm wondering if he's wrong or if I am." Kim said

"Interesting!" Wade said looking at a monitor, "I'm picking up the Smart Collar's unique radiation pattern from a satellite scan of your school. I can't tell if he's wearing it, but I can tell you the radiation that boosts your intelligence actually radiates outward from the collar up to a one hundred foot radius."

"That's a lot of variations of the word 'radiate'", Kim observed.

"Yeah", Wade agreed, "It also means anyone sitting within a hundred feet of the Smart Collar would feel its effects."

"Which means Ron was telling the truth!" Kim gasped, horrified, "The collar was in his backpack, and he was affected by it without even knowing."

"Sounds about right," Wade said, "I've pulled up the test grades of everyone in the senior class. Cross-referenced them with class schedules, and it looks like everyone sitting within a hundred feet of Ron aced their exams, including you."

"Oh, and I thought I was having a really good exam day!" Kim lamented, "What have I done? I gotta go talk to Barkin and then find Ron!"

Kim found Barkin easily enough, but Ron avoided her the rest of the day and went home, dejected, to tell his parents that he wouldn't be graduating from high school with his class.

Kim called in a favor from a local traffic report helicopter and managed to just beat Ron home.

Ron walked into the house, dropped his backpack just inside the doorway, and slumped down into a chair at the kitchen table.

"I'm not graduating", he told his mother glumly.

"Yes you are!" countered Kim's voice from the living room.

"Huh?"

Ron went into the living room. Kim explained everything to him.

"I was ferociously wrong," she said humbly, "And I don't blame you for being angry at me. But I just wanted you to know how sorry I am. In addition, I promise I will always ask you for your side of the story, and I will always believe in you, no matter what."

All of Ron's anger simply washed away, "OK! As long as my reputation is secure."

"What there is of it", Kim teased.

"Oh that does it!" Ron declared, "time to employ Dementor's fatal weakness!"

Ron tackled her, pinning her to the ground with one hand and tickling her mercilessly with the other. Sure, Kim could have easily flipped him away with one martial arts move or another, but she didn't exactly want to. She conquered Dementor's fatal weakness by pulling him to her and kissing him deeply.

Mr. Stoppable peaked into the living room, curious as to why the laughter had suddenly ceased. He quickly ducked back into the kitchen.

"Well, " he said to his wife, "At least he's not kissing the steak any more."

* * *

_I will always believe in you, no matter what._

Kim had stuck faithfully to that promise, never once breaking it.

The sun had gone down, Ron was almost to his parents house. He was eager to tell them everything that had happened that day, and tell them why he had faked his death.

_I will always believe in you…_

Ron halted, the phrase turning over and over in his mind. Then something Kim had said recently came to mind.

_I know you're Deathray._

Ron stood there, thinking hard.

_I will always believe in you._

A sick, nauseous, terrified feeling crept over him. He pulled on his ninja mask, turned, and sprinted back toward the Possible house.

He burst through the front door without even knocking. Mr. Dr. Possible was in the living room watching TV with the twins. Mrs. Dr. Possible was upstairs with her daughter. The twins leaped to their feet, startled.

"Upstairs!" Ron barked and then bounded up, leaping four at a time, "Wade! Come in, Wade, can you hear me?"

There was a second of silence, then, "I'm here, Ron, what's up?"

"Wade, contact me through the Kimunicator, can you do that?"

The twins reached the top of the stairs. Mrs. Dr. Possible leaped to her feet, alarmed.

There was a muffled beeping coming from the hope chest. Ron tore it open and searched. The Kimunicator was at the bottom. He pulled it out and pushed the button, Wade appeared.

Ron turned to the twins , "I want you to see this."

"What is it?" Wade had picked up on Ron's alarmed tone of voice.

Ron stepped to the bedside. Kim was lying there, tears in her eyes. She looked up at him.

"Go away, _Ronin!"_ she snapped.

"Remember the scans we did this morning?" Ron said into the Kimunicator, "I need the same one performed now."

"Oh, no!" Wade said, his voice filled with dread, "OK, here goes."

A small beam emanated from the Kimunicator and scanned the area at the head of the bed.

Several seconds of silence.

"Wade!"

"As you suspected," Wade said slowly, "No detectable brain matter. There is a small metallic mass at the base of the skull, very likely attached to the spinal column. But I can't detect any signals going in or coming from it. He's hidden the signal very thoroughly, which means I can't trace it back to its broadcast location."

"We were wrong!" Ron shouted in frustration, "He didn't wait until his honeymoon. He switched them out already!"

Suddenly, Ron turned and bolted down the stairs.

"Tell the agents at your father's lab to move in!" he called back to the twins, "Have them seize everything they find! You guys meet me there!"

"Ninjet's on its way" Wade said in his ear.

A few seconds later, the jet swooped in low and barely hovered long enough for Ron to get in. It streaked off like a bullet.

"That's why Shego attacked when she did this morning!" Ron shouted to Wade, "She must have seen me slip into the secret lab, but she knew if she attacked too soon, it would arouse suspicion and we would have been more thorough!"

Wade finished his thoughts for him "But she waited until you got to Kim's cryogenic tube. That was the real truth she was supposed to guard. If we knew that wasn't a clone in the tube, then the wedding would have meant nothing, and Deathray's plans would have unraveled! It's a good bet Ray's already done some tweaking to the artificial brain. The worst part about all this is the clone actually believes she's Kim Possible."

"I can't believe I was standing less than three feet away from Kim this morning! If we'd done a scan, we would have discovered the truth and …how could I be so stupid?" Ron bellowed in a rage.

"I'm just as much at fault," Wade said grimly, "You're approaching the lab!"

Ron barely waited for the cockpit to slide open. He vaulted out of the jet and sprinted toward the lab. Global Justice agents were already converging on the front doors. After forcing the doors open, Ron raced down the main corridor toward the rear of the building. There was a massive hole in the concrete wall. Ron sprinted inside, his heart in his throat.

The room was empty.

But for a few scattered pieces of discarded equipment, everything was gone.

The Deathray suits were gone.

The Ray Beam clones were gone.

And the cryogenic tube that had become Kim Possible's prison; perhaps even her coffin…

_Gone._


	13. Chapter 12

Note: Anonymous posting is now enabled. I realized the other day that little box was checked, and I didn't mean for it to be. So let the anonymous flaming commence!

Mad love to: Willk1989, PseudoJuliet, Lonestarr, Sestren NK, Lkillingsworth (blab all you like!), BluJae, Numbah34, Jokersdaking, sehnsucht792, Dreamer007 (sorry for the sleep loss), kimnronever, theokestral, Spooks-A-Lot, Fuzzie Muzzie, Furlings are Cats, zebrafinch (by reading this sentence, you hereby absolve me of all liability), JPMod, Akemi, Kimberly Ann Possible (thanks for the C2 invite), Emotionally Attached (The artist formally known as CptShort), KitsuneAkurei (ut oh, indeed), and Randomreader217 (note; any attempt at deification will be respectfully declined).

OK, either the final (next) chapter will be very long, or I will divide it in half. Just so you know ahead of time.

You know all those old sitcoms where someone gets trapped in a bank vault…?

* * *

Chapter 12

(delete)

_There went yet another memory of Ron Stoppable_.

Ray was finding the deletion of pleasant memories regarding Ron Stoppable from the artificial mind of the Kim Clone to be very therapeutic. It greatly helped to ease the rage. And since his wedding had been broken up in spectacular fashion earlier that day, there was quite a bit of rage to work out. Initially he sought to take it out on Shego, but she'd disappeared, in a manner of speaking. Hiding, no doubt. But since there was currently only one exit from the complex, and it was heavily guarded, there was no way she would be able to slip away without his noticing. No, she was definitely still somewhere in the complex. She'd have to come out of hiding eventually, and he'd deal with her. Oh, would he ever deal with her.

_Here was a memory of Ron Stoppable and something called the "Ron Factor"._

(delete)

This was fun! It would be perfect if he could just see the Kim Clone's face as her memories disappeared a little at a time. Or more importantly, the faces of those around her as Ray filtered out all the good memories in her life and left only those that were unpleasant.

_Another memory involving someone called Bonnie. She seemed to have been a tormentor of sorts in Kim's life during High School. Better leave those in._

When he thought about it, the Kim Clone had fallen just short of smashing success. He had almost pulled it off, and that was after having brought her out early. Yes, that wasn't exactly the plan, and he wasn't exactly a guy who worked well with improvisation; but he had to admit, he had come just that close to succeeding.

_Memory where Stoppable saves her from literally embarrassing herself to death._

(delete)

The biggest problem when he first activated the Kim Clone was the fact she believed she was Kim Possible. After all, she did posses a perfect copy of Kim's brain; her memories, her personality, and so forth. Modifying her memories and personality was a delicate process. If she suddenly became a completely different person, those who knew her would get suspicious. It was a matter of fine tuning. First priority, create and enhance doubts about Ron Stoppable. He had to delete a good chunk of Stoppable related memories in order to make that work. Good memories regarding Ron were incompatible with any doubts he could program into the brain. Anyone else attempting the process might have gone insane from the maddening detail involved. But Ray was meticulous and patient. After all, hadn't he worked for a year just to get Kim to accept a date with him?

Activating the Kim Clone before the intended time had been problematic. Originally she was scheduled to come to life – as it were – when he got back from his honeymoon. But the morning after the real Kim had rescued Ron from Deathray's lair, he'd gone down to see her at the hospital.

As casually as he could, he asked her what she thought about the possibility that Ron Stoppable had also been Deathray.

"No!" She said without thinking about it, "No way. That's not Ron."

"OK," Ray said backing off, "I understand how you can feel that way. I'm just bringing it up as a possibility, that's all."

"If he is Deathray, then I will ask him, and he will tell me", she said firmly. "Until he wakes up, I don't want to talk about it."

He'd never seen this side of Kim before. Usually she was very respectful and genuinely warm with Ray, but just the idea that Ron might be Deathray and she almost bristled.

So it was just a matter of time. Ron would tell her about Ray as soon as he woke up, and at the very least Kim would begin to wonder just who Ray really was. Again, Stoppable had become the bane of his existence. Time for a drastic measure. The modifications to the lair were almost complete. The real Kim Possisble would never disbelieve Ron, but if he took the Kim Clone down there, with some of her memories deleted and an inserted predilection to doubt Ron. That might be altogether different.

Timing, as usual, was everything. He left her alone in the hospital room with Ron, went to his secret lab, and set up the brain scanner. He had three Ray Clones assist with the preparations. Man, he sure could get things done fast with extra versions of himself helping out. As long as they stayed hidden until the proper time, it was like having himself as his own henchmen.

That afternoon he went back to the hospital and insisted Kim come and take a look at something in his lab. As soon as they got there, he snapped his fingers and she was strapped down to the table by four Ray Beams. The look on her face was priceless. She didn't ask too may questions, oddly enough. There was a strange look on her face that he couldn't quite place, she seemed almost…what? Relaxed? She certainly was calm in any case, and that was a huge surprise to him.

So he scanned her mind into the artificial brain; the Brainbox, as he called it. Made sure the scan was complete, and had the three Ray Clones haul her over to the waiting cryogenic tube. Looking at her cloned self was the one time Ray saw any kind of disconcerted look on her face. He de-activated the cryogenic tube, and the clone began to collapse. Ray caught her, almost lovingly. Kim looked like she was going to be ill. Now he had to work quickly. The clone was thawing out and without even an artificial brain to regulate the bodily functions, she would soon die.

As Kim was forcefully put into the cryo-tube, Ray walked over and stood triumphantly before her. There were a few things he wanted to tell her before he permanently put her on ice.

"Aren't you even curious as to what I'm doing?" Ray smirked.

"I knew you'd get around to telling me at some point," she said, glaring at him.

And realization struck Ray right there, He had finally graduated to Supervillain status! It never even occurred to him. All he wanted to do was tell her how he'd marry her clone and then go on to conquer the world with an army of Ray clones and Deathray suits, so he could watch the look of despair on her face as she was flash frozen. So _that_ was why the villain always spilled his plans right before the hero escaped from some elaborate deathtrap. Ah, but she would never escape. Ray supposed the villains always told themselves that, too. OK, forget spilling the plan. Just freeze her and get on with it.

"OK, don't ask then." Ray said beginning to close the door, "Any last words?"

"Yeah, she said.

He hesitated, waiting.

"The wedding is _SO _off!" She told him with narrowed eyes.

"I think she would disagree." Ray said, indicating the clone.

Then he slammed the door and hit the button. Ah, there we go. That last thing he said seemed to have gotten to her. She had a surprised, kind of vacant look on her face, perhaps she was realizing that Ray would marry the clone and no one would ever know the difference.

Now he had to work quickly. He had the Ray Clones carry the Kim Clone out of the secret lab and into Dr. Possible's room. Then he activated the artificial Kim Brain and ordered the Ray Clones to get out of sight and stay there. Finally, as the clone slowly began to gain consciousness, he pulled up her artificial brain info, scanned for recent memory, and deleted all recent memories that occurred after they pulled into the lab parking lot. Then back to Dr. Possible's room.

"Honey? Are you all right?", Ray asked concerned.

She slowly sat up and looked around as though waking up from a long sleep.

"What happened?", She looked at him, blinking.

"You just collapsed," Ray said in a worried voice, "You know, I'm not exactly surprised after the night you had last night. And spending a night in a hospital waiting room could not have helped with the fatigue factor."

"Yeah," she looked around, confused. "Wasn't there something here you wanted to show me?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, that can wait," Ray said, trying to sound sincere. It was difficult, considering she wasn't the real thing, "Right now you should go home and get some rest."

"Maybe I should check in on Ron," she said doubtfully.

"He'll still be there this evening," He said a little more forcefully, "I want you to go home and get a couple of hours of sleep. Do it for me? Please?"

"Yeah," she said, squinting her eyes, "Yeah, OK. Hey, didn't you say something to me earlier? Something about Ron and Deathray?"

"Oh, we can talk about that tomorrow," Ray said softly. "Maybe I better drive you home."

On the drive over they talked about the upcoming wedding. She was so much like the real thing it was almost scary. No, wait, it wasn't scary, it was genius. Ray reminded himself to enhance a few things, like her adoration of him, maybe delete some of her more defiant and disrespectful qualities. Suddenly he realized that after all his desire to posses Kim Possible, he had moved on to something better. A fully customizable Kim Possible. Soon she would be worshipping the very ground he walked on. In the meantime, Ray would make arrangements to transport a large package to their honeymoon destination. With the package marked 'top secret', and with Dr. Possible's lab insignia on it, no one would look inside. Then he'd rent a fishing boat, sail out a few miles, and drop the heavily weighted tube with the real Kim into the water.

Of course, those were the plans as of this morning. Now he wouldn't be going on his honeymoon, and the clone was in the hands of those who would never let him near her. But hey, why not keep Kim stashed in the tube, and harvest a little DNA each time he got tired of the latest customized Kim? Not worshipful enough? New Kim. Not supportive enough of his plans for global conquest? New Kim. Put a stain on his favorite shirt? New Kim. Ray needs to take his frustrations out on someone? New Kim.

And it would be just that easy. Pull the real Kim out of the tube, scan her brain, pluck a hair for DNA and then back into the freezer. He was willing to bet he could do it all before she thawed out. And hey, sometimes it might be fun to just let her thaw out for a few minutes. Welcome back to the world! You've been frozen for ten years and everyone's forgotten you, now chill, baby!

Yeah, this would be sweet.

Of course, the real test of the first Kim Clone came when he took her down to Deathray's lair. Sure he could plant a suggestion in her brain that indicated Stoppable, but it drove the point home if she had external input. Finding the mask was just the thing. And, of course, the real purpose was to convince the twins. He knew they looked up to their big sister, and if she felt definitively that Ron was Deathray, well then they'd have no choice but to keep their yaps shut about any suspicions they might have.

And then no one would have believed Stoppable, no matter how sincere he sounded.

Stoppable. Oh the rage that boiled up whenever he even thought about Ron Stoppable. The man just wouldn't die, even when he tried to kill himself! And then there was the humiliating defeat Stoppable had served him at his own wedding! The humiliation… and the fear. Ray instantly told himself it wasn't fear he had felt. How could he possibly be afraid of Ron Stoppable?

_Memory about Kim and Ron's prom night._

(delete)

Yeah, maybe things weren't so bad after all. The Possibles had a Kim that would soon be little more than an emotional vegetable. Sadness, Misery, Fear, he wasn't going to delete those. And they would all think they had saved Kim from some horrible fate, only to watch her have a melt down.

_Likes being active in the community._

(delete)

He was going to enjoy this.

* * *

Three figures crouched at the edge of the woods near Dr. Kim Possible's laboratory and quietly discussed a plan of action. Under normal circumstances the lab was a two story, high-ceilinged structure surrounded by a tall fence. There was a single lane entrance complete with guard shack. Beyond the fence, thick forest for several miles.

Unfortunately these weren't normal circumstances. Three Deathray battle-bots – no doubt piloted by Ray clones – were standing guard at strategic points around the lab. It was Jim who had suggested coming to check the place out. Kim had shut it down a month ago in preparation for her wedding (Kim never really had a staff, so no one was put out of work). She intended to resume her research after the honeymoon. Clearly, Ray had been using it for his own purposes for some time now.

Tim had surmised that because Ray was now a wanted fugitive, he might not have such an easy time disposing of Kim, so there was a high probability she was still alive. They didn't really expect to find anything at her lab. But it looked like they just might have stumbled upon everything.

A direct assault was out of the question. Any overt actions they might take could result in harm coming to Kim, _if_ she was actually inside. Someone was going to have to go in there and find out, and since Ron was both a trained ninja and had the capability to cloak himself if necessary, it would naturally fall to him. Initially, he demurred, saying it probably wasn't his place to rescue Kim Possible while her brothers remained outside.

Tim argued the point with him, "This isn't about whose 'place' it is, it's about Kim's safety and the best chance she has of being rescued. Believe me, if we could cloak, if we had training in Ninjitsu, then yeah, we'd be the ones going in. But that isn't the case. We've seen you in action in this kind of scenario. You're the one who should go. And who knows, she may not even be in there anyway."

Tim's words were tactful, but his eyes said it all; _This isn't about you, shut up and do your job._

Ron never questioned the twins' judgment again.

Jim had been quietly thinking for some time, and finally spoke up. "I think there may be something in the lab we can use to our advantage."

The other two waited for him to continue.

"There's one security measure Kim probably never told Ray about," Jim went on, "Mostly because it was never actually intended to be used except in extreme cases of security breach. After Goliath Kilgore broke into the lab, we refitted the walls with an experimental titanium alloy."

"It's one of the densest alloys known to man," Tim picked up where his brother left off, "Heavier than lead, and tougher than anything out there. We fitted large slabs of it above the entryways. We called the whole thing 'Final Option' to distinguish it from the other measures we had installed. Kim was never to use it unless she absolutely felt she had to, and never to tell anyone of its existence, mostly because the fewer people who knew, the less likely that information could get out."

"So what does it do?" Ron asked.

"Basically, it turns the entire lab into an inescapable prison." Jim explained, "Plates drop into the door and window fittings and fuse themselves into place. It was designed to trap someone inside if, say for instance, Kilgore ever decided to come back or some other bad guy. Once Final Option is engaged, there isn't a weapon on earth that could blast its way in or out. We're pretty sure the lab could withstand a direct nuclear blast."

Ron chuckled, then stopped when he noted Jim was serious.

"It would take us most of a day to just cut a hole small enough to crawl through," Tim continued "In addition, the walls are embedded with automatic jamming equipment. Communications would be completely cut off."

"OK" Ron surmised, "So we lure the three Deathrays in there and then trigger Final Option."

"Actually, I was thinking of a different approach," Jim interjected. "You get in there and implement Final Option, trapping the Deathrays outside. We deal with them, you check out the situation in the lab. They won't be able to get in and impede whatever you do in there. After we deal with these guys, we'll cut our way in and find you."

"What do you think, Wade?" Ron asked.

"I'm with the Twins on this one," Wade confirmed in his ear.

"OK, now we just need to figure out a way inside." Ron said.

"Actually, I've been thinking about that." Wade continued, "I'm looking at a satellite image of the lab now. The three Deathrays are all facing away from each other. I think our best approach might be the roof."

"Wade thinks we should go in through the roof," Ron told the Twins.

"Can't," Jim stated, "The roof's one giant titanium plate, with titanium grating on all the air vents. Besides, none of the air vents are large enough for a human to crawl through."

Ron nodded knowingly.

"Well", Wade continued, "We can get you onto the roof and go from there."

* * *

Shego had had enough. Well, more than enough, really. What began as a simple revenge plot against Kim Possible had now completely overwhelmed her. She wasn't the type who normally took that kind of treatment from anyone. But his rage was fierce, and unpredictable, and there were multiple versions of him running around now. She cursed herself for letting Ray get away with his abuses. And she felt like such a coward for not standing up for herself.

Earlier that day, an alarm had gone off in the control center. It was Deathray One, and it was supposed to be at the police impound lot. So she got on the communicator, and tried to contact Ray. Then she pulled up the internal camera for Deathray One and there he was.

Dressed in his tux.

It was such an absurd sight to see Ray strapped into the cockpit dressed in a tuxedo that she let out an involuntary giggle. Then she realized something must have gone wrong.

Again!

Kim Possible was currently residing in a cryogenic tube, and somehow she still managed to defeat Ray's plans. Then she realized it was probably Ron and the computer kid, and they were putting their lives on the line to save what they thought was Kim. After all Ron had been through, almost dying, and then being framed for Deathray, he still tried to save Kim.

Shego knew she was in trouble.

She also knew no one would be coming to try and save her.

She tried sneaking out the entrance, but it was guarded, and they weren't about to let her go. So she slipped out of sight, found herself a hiding place within the complex, and bided her time. She was confident she would get out at some point.

And when she did, all thoughts of vengeance would be focused on Ray Beam.

* * *

The Ninjet hovered some one hundred feet above the complex. Ron strapped himself into the harness and hooked up the cable. They couldn't land on the roof for fear what little noise the jet made would still attract attention. Parachuting was not a good idea, since even a breeze could blow him off course.

Ron double checked the cable was secure, then went over a few things with Wade. Once on the roof, the Twins would create a commotion, drawing the three Deathrays away from the lab. Ron would infiltrate once they were safely away from the building. It was decided Ron would try to get in through one of the regular doors, since the Deathrays were obviously using the large garage-style doors at the building's loading dock on the other side. The Twins had given him a small remote device that would trigger the Final Option measure.

The cockpit slid open, and Ron stood up, preparing himself as best he could for what was to come.

"Remember," Wade reminded him, "Once that place seals itself shut, we won't be able to talk to each other. Contact me the second you get out of there."

"Aw, Wade, are you actually worried about me?" Ron teased.

"Hey, I saved your butt at the wedding today. Don't make me go out in public again." Wade said seriously, "Just be careful, and bring her home."

"You got it, buddy." Ron said quietly and dove off the aircraft.

He sailed silently, almost gracefully through the air. Wade engaged the brakes gradually and Ron came to a halt just a few feet above the roof. He detached himself and dropped silently to the roof below. The cable withdrew, and the Ninjet rose quietly up and away.

Ron crept to the edge of the roof nearest the Twins position and stuck his head up as far as he dared. He wasn't sure just exactly what kind of distraction they had planned, but he certainly wasn't expecting them to just walk casually out in the open.

Yet that's exactly what they did.

The Deathray nearest Ron powered up some kind of explosive ray and fired. The twins just managed to dodge it, turned and sprinted back into the woods. The beam ripped a three foot crater in the asphalt, sending chunks of debris flying everywhere. The two Deathrays nearest him moved off in pursuit.

Ron lowered himself to the ground and frantically began checking doors. All of them were blocked. In some cases, large steel plates had been welded over them from the inside. There was no way he was going to get inside that way. He used his grappler to climb back to the roof and crept over to the other side of the building. To his dismay, the third Deathray had taken up a position guarding the large loading dock doors. His head was about eight feet below and a little forward of Ron's position.

Explosions and other sounds began to come from the woods. The third Deathray remained unmoved.

Ron considered his options. He couldn't drop to the ground without injuring himself. He could lower himself with the grappler but if something caught Deathray's attention halfway down, he'd be dead. Then a thought occurred to him.

_You must successfully make the leap._

Ron thought back to his final days at Master Sensei's school on Mt. Yamanuchi.

"Wade, get ready to cloak me." He said quietly.

Ron took a step back, and two quick steps forward and leaped off the roof.

_Lightasafeather, lightasafeather, lightasafeather! _Ron thought frantically to himself.

He alighted one-footed on the head of the mechanical beast, straightened up and stepped backward into mid air. He caught himself on Deathray's shoulders and clung tight, piggy-back style.

"Now!" he said as quietly as he could and as loudly as he dared.

The cloak engaged and Ron vanished.

The Deathray spun around looking wildly about. Then it extended a mechanical arm with a camera attachment and examined itself. Finding nothing, it strode into the lab a few paces, expecting to find something there.

Ron triggered Final Option. With deafening thuds and slams, massive metal plates slid into place around every door, window and conceivable opening. A huge titanium plate slid downward over the loading door opening and settled with a ringing crash. Then loud hissing noises could be heard as the plates fused themselves into place. The cloak disengaged.

The Deathray spun again and hammered the loading dock doors with every weapon he had. Barely a scratch. Then the mechanoid turned and moved to the center of the lab. He began walking down a concrete ramp oddly placed right in middle of the lab's large central room. At the bottom of the ramp was a long corridor with concrete on all sides. Wherever it lead, the corridor clearly was a recent addition to Kim's laboratory. Ron slipped off the back of the Deathray and flattened himself against a wall. The Deathray continued walking along the corridor. Ron guessed the passageway to be about a mile long., and at the other end would be whatever operation Ray had set up. His new lair, no doubt.

Ron looked at the Deathray to double check it was moving away from him then ran back up into the lab to check each of the rooms. He looked in every open space in the main room, then started down one hallway and checked each room individually. They were all littered with equipment and disused research material, but no cryogenic tube. He moved to the opposite end of the building and began checking each of those rooms., The first three were empty, as was the supply closet. Only four rooms remained. If she wasn't in any of these, Ron would have to go into the heart of enemy territory to get her. Who knows how many Deathrays were down in there?

First room. Empty.

Second room. Empty.

Ron's heart began to race.

Third room. Empty.

No…wait.

There was a soft blue glow in the far corner. Ron moved as quickly as he could to it.

_YES!_

Kim looked the same as he had seen her that morning at Dr. Possible's lab. There didn't seem to be any security measures in place around her. Clearly she had been stashed back here in haste. Ron looked to the side of the tube. One red button, one green button.

At least Ray liked to keep things simple.

He pressed the green button and waited. Five seconds later alarms began to blare from the main chamber of the lab. There seemed to be security measures after all. Then it occurred to Ron that perhaps the Deathray had made it to the other end of the corridor and reported what he'd found. The jamming equipment embedded in the titanium plating had prevented it from simply calling in an alarm.

Ron hesitated. Should he leave Kim here alone? On the other hand if he stayed, the Ray Clones would no doubt do a thorough search of the lab when they got there. Ron sprinted out of the room, down the ramp, and along the huge concrete corridor. A Deathray was indeed coming back toward the lab. Then Ron's heart dropped to his feet. There were _six_ Deathrays coming down the corridor in a neat, single-file line. He could get back to the lab, hide himself and Kim, and hope the Rays wouldn't find him. They would probably vaporize or disintegrate everything in the lab, which made hiding a moot point. In addition there would be no help from Wade. Just Ron Stoppable versus six Deathrays.

The alternative was that Kim would likely be caught and killed.

He charged down the corridor.

* * *

"Only two!" Jim called to his brother, "Where's the other one?"

"I don't think it left the lab!", Tim called back, then ignited his rocket pack and shot into the air, barely avoiding blaster fire.

Jim had to dive and roll away from disintegrator fire. He regained his feet, took out his grappler and shot. The hook latched itself with a metallic thud on to one of Deathray's legs. Jim pushed a button and let go of the grappler. A tiny rocket fired, propelling Jim's end of the grappler sideways. Anchored firmly to the leg of the Deathray, it spun through the air in ever tightening circles around the mechanoid until it wrapped itself firmly around Deathray's legs five or six times. The metal behemoth fell over with a crash and struggled to free itself. Jim ran over, trying to find the latch, but it seemed Ray had made some improvements. The latches on the suits were now electronic and could only be opened by remote.

Jim crouched and took out a small device that looked like a golf ball on the end of an ice pick. He pushed a couple of buttons, then jammed the device into the metal skin. Three seconds later, massive electric bolts began to surge through the machine, overloading its systems and shorting everything out, including the latch mechanism. The Ray clone was trapped inside.

One down.

* * *

The Lotus Blade had already become a shield by the time he had it in front of him. Ron took the full force of the disintegrator and was knocked backward. This time he lost his footing and tumbled, twisting out of the way of the beam. Some of the hairs on the back of his neck were singed.

To Ron's good fortune - depending on how you looked at it and your capacity for optimism - the corridor had been constructed to accommodate the width and height of only a single Deathray. Ron wondered abstractly what happened when two machines entered the hallway in opposing directions. But since they were all under the control of one mind, maybe that didn't happen. Still it seemed impractical to build a single lane road a mile long when the vehicles couldn't pass each other.

Unless…

Ron changed the shield to a battle axe and hurled it, disabling the disintegrator. The lead Deathray was compelled to switch to the more destructive blaster cannon. Ron flattened himself against the wall and froze, hesitating for a fraction of a second, then he leaped clear just as blaster fired ripped a hole in the wall, scattering chunks of concrete. Dirt poured in like sand for a time and then stopped.

_Maybe,_ Ron thought to himself, _Ray didn't build a double-wide corridor because he couldn't._

No time like the present to test that theory. Ron began hopping and leaping all over the corridor, dodging blaster fire. He made sure not to stay just on one side of the passageway, but rather leaped from floor to wall, or ran up a wall and leaped to the other side. After a series of these types of maneuvers, Ron would retreat back down the corridor toward the lab, then stop and dodge more blaster fire. The Deathrays pursued, and whether it was because of some strategic decision, or simply that they were still controlled by a mind that had once been human, they would cease their forward progress whenever Ron did. Apparently it didn't occur to them to simply march forward, driving Ron back into a dead end at the lab.

Ron performed his blaster dodging twice more before he felt he was satisfied. They were about an eighth of a mile from the ramp leading up into Kim's laboratory. Ron turned to face the Deathrays. Once again they stopped and the lead machine raised his blaster and fired. Instead of dodging, or shielding himself, Ron flattened himself to the floor and hurled the shield with every ounce of strength he could muster. It sailed off the end of his arm, glowing a bright white, and slammed into the lead Deathray.

The mechanoid toppled over backward. The clone inside it panicked and forgot to release the trigger of the blaster cannon, and thus continued firing as he fell over. Blaster beams ripped into the ceiling, and since the walls and floor were already severely damaged and weakened by the battle, the cave-in was almost instantaneous. Ron had been right, the corridor was built as large is it could be because the ground was too unstable to support anything larger.

Hundreds of tons of rock and dirt came thundering down upon the Deathrays as the cave-in traveled back along the corridor. Ron turned and sprinted for the ramp, holding up his hand to call the blade back to him as he ran. He stumbled the entire way as the floor beneath him shook violently and began to crack. Halting at the top, he turned around to face anything that might have made it through; be it clone or machine. But the only thing that emerged was a cloud of concrete dust.

He stood triumphant, at the top of the ramp and was about to let loose with a "booyah" when he heard a faint, muffled cough.

_Kim!_

He raced back to the appropriate room and stepped inside.

* * *

They had expected the remaining Deathray to take flight, but apparently Ray had gotten wise to the fact that if he recalled it, they'd be able to follow it back to his new lair. The Twins were almost toying with this one, staying just out reach of its blaster, but not disabling it either. If Ray – or his artificial brain – had been a more experienced combat tactician, he would have realized the twins were purposely toying with it in order to study its capabilities.

It followed them into a clearing with four large trees in a rough square pattern. Both boys fired a rocket grappler, attaching to each leg and spinning around the closest tree trunk. Then they got around behind it, grappled its arms and ran out in front, pulling it over forward. They anchored each arm to a corresponding tree which left the mechanoid barely able to move. When they felt the Deathray was relatively secure, they brought in signal jamming equipment. Whatever the signal was coming from the artificial brain, it was too strong to be jammed. But normal communications between the Deathray and its home base would not be possible.

Jim stood guard while Tim got out a blowtorch. It was time to perform some mechanical surgery.

* * *

She was standing in the corner, just in front of the cryogenic tube, trembling. Rather, she was shivering. He stepped toward her and took off his mask and gloves.

"Who's there?" She asked, looking in his direction but not looking at him. "Is someone there?"

"It's all right," He reassured her quietly, "Your blindness is a temporary side-effect of the cryogenic process. Your eyesight should return gradually."

Ron's heart raced. Here they finally were, both of them conscious, and with no secret identities between them. After six long years, Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable were standing face to face. Would she be pleased or angry with him? Ron couldn't get his heart to slow down. He'd just faced six Deathrays and his pulse had barely fluttered. Now he was standing in front of her, and found himself terrified.

"That's…that's Ronin's voice! RON!" she cried out, waving her hand back in forth in front of her, "Where are you? Come here, please."

"I'm here," he said stepping closer to her. He reached out and caught her hand.

She flew into his arms.

"I _knew _you'd come!" she said, embracing him fiercely, "Somehow…I don't know… when they were strapping me down on the table, all I could think was that I knew you would come for me."

She said it with a fervent conviction, not a teary-eyed, weak-kneed damsel in distress kind of declaration, but rather with the solid knowledge that he was somewhere out there, and if it was within his power, he would not let her fall.

Ron hesitated, then put his arms tightly around her, his cheek on her head, smelling her hair as he had done so many times before. And like so many times before, she put her head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat, her arms wrapped around him as far as they could go.

For a moment, they held each other, not saying anything.

As much as he didn't want to break the moment, Ron spoke, "We shouldn't stay in this room."

He gave her a quick assessment of the situation.

"I'm not sure how extensive the cave-in is" Ron told her, "And if they decide to clear it, they could come looking for us before your brothers manage to get us free. Is there some place here we can hide?"

"I think I know a place," Kim said after considering for a moment. "Take us out to the loading dock."

Ron led her out to the large central chamber at the top of the ramp. There was nothing but solid darkness down in the corridor now. Only the emergency lights were on.

"Which way are we facing?" She asked him.

"The loading doors," Ron answered.

She pointed back over her right shoulder, "There should be a spiral staircase back in that corner, it's got some plants and books stacked on the steps. Is it still there?"

"Yes", he confirmed.

"At the top of those stairs is a small observation room." She stated "It's never been used. If we can get up in there without disturbing the books and plants, then maybe they won't think to look for us up there…if they manage to get in here, that is."

They worked their way over to the staircase. Ron carefully removed all the books and plants from the steps, then let Kim make her own way up the stairs. Then he replaced the items as best as he could remember and grappled himself up to the second floor landing. Through a narrow door was a very tiny room that looked out over a surgical theater. Its original intent was to showcase Kim's research to the public when she completed it, but the room had never been used. Recently it had become a sort of storage room for extra office chairs, a desk or two, and whatnot. There was plush carpeting on the floor. Ron rearranged a couple of the desks so they could sit in the farthest, darkest corner of the room, and if in the off chance someone decided to peek their head in for a quick glance, Kim and Ron wouldn't be seen. Under other circumstances, Ron would have thought it a pretty cool fort.

They settled in to wait, sitting on the floor, huddling close to each other, their backs to the wall. Kim snuggled up to him, laying her head on his shoulder, glad to be in anyone's company, but probably more glad that it was Ron than anyone else. Ron wasn't sure what to feel. He didn't expect her to sit on the other side of the room, of course, but… he concluded that when two people have had frightening experiences and are in a situation that seems desperate, hiding from an unseen enemy, they would probably cling to each other. And if there was a history between these two people, well, then they would _definitely _cling to each other. Best not to overanalyze any given situation, though. He was here with her, and right now that's all he cared about.

They sat for some time in silence.

Then Kim finally spoke up, "So tell me something, Ron…Ron?"

No answer.

Ron Stoppable had started that day at four in the morning as a fugitive escaping from a guarded room in a hospital. It continued with breaking into Dr. Possible's lab, discovering a terrible secret, briefly battling Shego, racing to stop a wedding, being forcibly arrested, battling Deathray, discovering another terrible secret, racing back to Dr. Possible's lab, then proceeding to Kim's lab where he broke in, faced down six Deathrays and rescued Kim Possible.

Perhaps we shouldn't blame him too much for falling asleep.

* * *

"Where is Deathray's new lair?"

No answer.

"What are Deathray's plans regarding the battlesuits and the clones?"

No answer.

Jim and Tim were interrogating the clone they'd extracted from the second Deathray they'd brought down. An engineering team from Global Justice was on its way to begin cutting through the titanium alloy at the lab. In the meantime, no one had any idea if Kim was alive, or even if Ron had found her, or even if Ron himself was still alive. The Ninjet patrolled the skies above Middleton, scanning and re-scanning everything it could. Wade set up an alarm system should anything out of the ordinary be detected, and went to sleep near his workstation. The Twins continued to question their prisoner.

"What has been done with Kim Possible?"

No answer.

Abruptly, the clone slumped over forward. Tim caught him and tried to prop him up, but it was no good, he collapsed in a heap at their feet. The signal from the artificial Ray had been cut off.

The twins looked at each other.

"I've got-" Tim began.

"-an idea." Jim finished.

* * *

Over at the Possible household, the Drs. Possible were trying to deal with the fact that this thing in their daughter's bed that looked like Kim, sounded like Kim and believed she was Kim, actually wasn't. The poor creature was curled up in a fetal position and couldn't seem to stop crying.

"Mom", she whimpered, "Why is all this happening?"

_I'm not your mother,_ Mrs. Possible thought to herself, but then felt guilty for thinking it. It wasn't the clone's fault. She had Kim's memories, her personality – what was left of it – and the belief that she was Kim Possible. Whatever insidious schemes Ray Beam had dreamed up and carried out, they weren't the clone's doing. Suddenly Kim's mother was overwhelmed with pity. She went to the edge of the bed and tried to soothe the miserable creature.

"Try and get some sleep," she said softly, stroking her hair.

Suddenly, the clone's eyes went wide. She began to struggle and convulse.

* * *

The file that regulates breathing.

(delete)

* * *

Her arms waved about wildly. She was pointing at her chest.

"What is it?" Mrs. Dr. Possible asked, becoming alarmed.

The clone continued to convulse, tears streaming down her face. She wasn't even struggling to breathe. That function had been erased, which meant the mind controlling her had no knowledge of how to breathe at all.

* * *

(delete all)

* * *

She collapsed on the bed, her eyes vacant, her expression terrified. Mrs. Dr. Possible had to look away. Suffering was something she couldn't bear to watch happen to anyone. The clone lay there in Kim's bed, lifeless.

An hour later, a team from Global Justice arrived and removed the body. They intended to take it back to headquarters for study. Mrs. Dr. Possible shed a few tears for the wretched creature whose entire existence was based on the belief she was someone else.

Needless to say, neither of the Drs. Possible had a very high opinion of Ray Beam any more.

* * *

Ron sat bolt upright, "Kim!"

"Sssshhh, it's all right," she soothed, "I'm right here."

He'd been sleeping with his head in her lap, and no idea that he'd even fallen asleep in the first place.

"How long was I asleep?"

"Two, maybe three hours." She answered.

"What time is it?"

"I don't know. Aren't you wearing your Ronin suit?"

"Yes, why?"

"You have all those gadgets, and there's nothing on that suit that tells you the time of day?"

"It's never been an issue," Ron protested, "Time of day can be meaningless when you're a superhero."

"Drama Ninja", she teased.

"You hungry?"

"Famished."

Ron handed her half an energy bar, "All I got, sorry."

"It'll do."

They munched in silence for a couple of minutes.

"So tell me all about Ronin." She inquired.

Ron sat there a moment, thinking. Then, instead of telling her about Ronin, he decided to tell her everything. He started from the moment they walked out of Cody Pendant's lair and told her about his frustrations at becoming a liability as a sidekick, about why he ended things with her, and why he went to Sensei's school at Yamanuchi. He told her about his return to Middleton, his partnership with Wade, and his intent on demonstrating to her that he would no longer be a risk to Kim's life. He told her, honestly, about the effect the news of her engagement had on him, and about his decision to fake his death and completely become Ronin. He told her all the things he felt that day, fighting by her side on the roof of the bank, putting her life in jeopardy again, and surrendering himself to Deathray. Finally, he finished with his decision the previous morning to put it all behind him, and expose Deathray before he could hurt Kim, not realizing what he thought was Kim was actually a clone.

When he finished, neither of them said anything.

"I understand," she finally said softly.

"You do?" He was surprised.

"Well, let's be clear, Ron. I understand why you did these things. That doesn't mean I agree with it. You had no right to walk away from me like that without telling me why. You had no right to let everyone think you were dead, and you had no right to give yourself up to Deathray." She said firmly.

"But-" he began.

"Hey," she cut him off, "I let you talk, now it's your turn to listen."

Ron shut up.

"You didn't drag me into hero work, I chose it myself. That means the decision to put my life in danger was mine and always has been. So I understand that you felt somehow responsible for some of the things that have happened in my life, but your decisions were the wrong ones. You should have told me why you were walking away from us three days before the wedding."

"But you would have talked me out of it," he protested.

"Exactly!" Her voice took on an edge, "I would have told you that sometimes things happen that you have no control over. I would have told you that when you do hero work, there will be those who will want to hurt you, maybe even kill you. And then I would have told you that even if I knew I was going to die a year later as a result of my relationship with you, then I would rather have that year with you than the last six years without you!"

"Well the last six years haven't been so great for me either!" he argued back, "I didn't walk away because I stopped loving you, and the fact of the matter is, I never stopped loving you! Not one day in the last six years went by that I didn't think about you and how much I loved you, and wishing I could be with you but too afraid that if we were, then you'd get hurt!"

"Yeah?" She said, her voice rising, "Well I never stopped loving you either!"

"You got engaged!" he shouted.

"You faked your death!" she shouted back.

"Because you got engaged!"

"I was settling for _less_!"

Silence.

At some point Kim must have gotten her eyesight back because she pushed Ron over, pinned him to the floor, and kissed him fiercely.

* * *

The surveillance camera in the operating theater had infrared capability. He'd been listening to the conversation the whole time via that camera, but when the shouting stopped, he panned over and switch to infrared mode. Two human-shaped heat signatures were locked in an embrace in the observation room. It wasn't too hard to guess what they were doing.

Blinding rage seethed within him.

He punched a couple of buttons on the control panel. His own face appeared on the view screen.

"Status report!" He barked.

"We're almost through to the lab," the clone answered, "Estimated time of completion, about three minutes."

Ray switched off the intercom without acknowledging.

Three minutes.

First, he'd let her watch Stoppable die, slowly. Then he'd show her just how much less she had really settled for.


	14. Chapter 13

Author's comment: It's interesting how the subconscious mind works sometimes. I have my five favorite KP episodes saved on my TiVo and just yesterday noticed something about my three favorites (Exchange, Blush and The Fearless Ferret). The common theme in each of these episodes is that Ron is the hero. Lo and behold, I look over my story and discover that not only have I basically told it mainly from Ron's perspective, but he's the hero most of the time. Originally it was intended to be a balanced perspective with both characters sharing in the hero duties. Weird, huh?

OK, gonna have to single out a reviewer and say "thanks for noticing". Specifically Cilghal16 who caught my nod to "Space Conflict". Good eye, my friend. I love putting little things like that in my stories. In Chapter 11, with the clone cliffhanger, I thought for sure I was giving away the ending when I had Dementor use a "duplicate collar", but no one pointed that out. I guess it was too subtle.

Anyway, my grateful thanks for the kind words to: Akemi, Blujae, Apaka, Jezrianna2.0, Fuzzie Muzzie, Sestren NK, aimtbj, Raininginsanity, Pseudojuliet, Jacob, sehnsucht792, Jokerisdaking, oneredneckgoddess, LKillingsworth, Kimberly Ann Possible, pokey, Dreamer007, KitsuneAkurei, JPMod, Widow Shark (apologies are never necessary), Mithlond88, ps2teen1213, Spooks-A-Lot, knuckz, RandomReader217, kimnronever, willk1989, Cilghal16, dreaan, EmotionallyAttached, zebraFinch, Tanya16, and Melissa Ivory.

As it turned out, this chapter did run long and I had to break it up. So the next chapter will definitely be the conclusion and there will be a bonus epilogue. But I kinda like the way this particular chapter ends.

Let the showdown commence:

* * *

Chapter 13

(delete all)

Shego had spent the last twenty minutes trying to access the Artificial Ray Brain with no success. It was heavily encrypted and Ray never bothered to share the password with her. Not that she was surprised. Ray didn't exactly trust her these days. She knew he'd been working on the brain of the Kim Clone recently, and as it turned out, never bothered to encrypt the access to that. After several frustrating attempts to guess the password for Ray's Brainbox, she turned to the Kim Clone.

It was late, and of course, and Ray had to sleep at some point. Not much was happening. Communication with the lab entrance had been cut off, and the Ray Brain sent six Deathrays to investigate.

Shego had noticed some of the flaws of the Ray Brain right off. Initially, the brain had difficulty sorting out the thousands of signals that came in from each clone every minute. So Ray had constructed a huge number of "sub-brains" that allowed for the rapid processing of the input that came in from each clone. It was like a spider-web of artificial intelligence. Ray's brain lay at the center, surrounded by ten or twelve artificial brains connected to the main one. Each of the surrounding brains were interconnected and had their own network of artificial minds. This allowed each clone to function more independently, and yet still maintain the hive mind and coordinate whatever needed to be done.

The central unit that housed Ray's mind was, of course, a simple copy of the real one, so it had Ray's memories, and capacity for decision making. Or lack thereof. It also had Ray's personality; domineering, quick tempered, and bad at improvisational thinking. Decisions and information flowed mostly in one direction; outward from the central mind. Brainbox Ray couldn't be bothered with mundane decisions. So when a message flowed into the network that two males were spotted at the edge of the woods near the complex's only remaining entrance, the simple decision to "deal with it" was issued by one of the sub-minds.

Information was given different levels of importance, and unless a piece of information was deemed "extremely urgent" it never found its way into the central mind. This was why, when communications to the lab were cut off, the clone in the lab had to walk the Deathray all the way down the corridor and verbally report it to another clone, who in turn passed the information along to another, thus increasing the level of urgency of that particular piece of information. A more efficient and experienced mind would have allowed the clone to simply send a thought out through his controlling sub-mind and thus actual communicators would never have been needed. So when the clone in the lab thought "communications are down" the first level of sub-mind halted the piece of information there and issued an odd command: "notify someone about it." Often the sub-minds – which were simple copies of the central mind of Ray Beam – had difficulty determining the appropriate times to have the various clones function as individuals or to pass possibly vital information along to the central core.

So six Deathrays were sent to investigate, and when the information came back that there was an intruder in the corridor, the sub-mind simply ordered the lead Deathray to eliminate it. It had not yet occurred to any of the sub-minds to ask why there was an intruder, or whether it had anything to do with the two males that had been sighted earlier.

Shego knew that if she shut down the central brain, the resulting cascade effect would shut down all of the sub-minds. She spent a frantic and frustrating twenty minutes trying to guess Ray's password, and was unable to come up with the correct one. Shego thought for a moment. She could try sending out a call for help, but any unauthorized communications would be tracked instantly.

But what if something were to happen to the Kim Clone? An examination would reveal the clone's true nature and someone would begin looking for the real Kim Possible. And considering the intelligence and resourcefulness of those who would come looking, they wouldn't simply stop when they found her. They'd shut Ray's operation down permanently, and Shego would have a way out of this mess.

She pulled up the files of the Kim Clone, scanned for the file that regulated breathing, and deleted it. Then it occurred to her what the clone might be enduring, and the possibility that anyone around it might try to revive it, so she selected all files and deleted them. For the briefest of moments Shego felt guilty, wondering what Kim's Clone might be going through, and perhaps her parents. But then she told herself clones weren't real, and the Possibles would want to have their real daughter back anyway.

Suddenly, the control center began to rumble and shake. Alarms went off. A quick glance at one of the security monitors showed her there was a cave-in at the corridor. That would certainly wake up Ray. She got out of the control center, and found her way back to her hiding place. Now it was just a matter of time.

The waiting, though, was often the hardest part.

* * *

Sometimes one of the drawbacks of being a superhero is impulsive behavior. After all, when you have to think in terms of the now, and make split-second decisions that often can affect whether you live or die, then the tendency toward following an impulse can very powerful.

For the second time in a week, Kim Possible's lips were pressed firmly against those of a man she hadn't seen in six years. Of course, that first time she was administering CPR, and in all the excitement, hadn't recognized him until she had taken a good look at him.

This time, however, they were locked in a kiss. For Kim's part it was a yearning, angry-yet-relieved, where-have-you-been-all-this-time kind of kiss.

Granted, those were rare, but when they did happen they could be quite exciting.

The impulse part, of course, was that Kim found herself kissing Ron before she fully realized what she was doing. Intense situations tended to bring out intense feelings in people. And considering the history between them, it probably didn't take much to open the emotional floodgates.

There was something both familiar and new about it. Ron was certainly a different person; muscular yet tender, and with a quiet intensity about him that had probably come from years of training on a lonely mountaintop in Japan. But somewhere in there was the same old Ron Stoppable. She could see it in the way he looked at her; not just for the brief time they had been together in the lab, but – in hindsight – on the roof of the school the night of the reunion, or that day on the roof of the bank.

Kim realized there was something both new and familiar about her as well. The hindsight observations of the reunion and the bank caused her to skim over her relationship with Raymond. She'd certainly never kissed Raymond like this. And though she told him on occasion that she loved him, it was often with the feeling that maybe she was trying to convince herself that she meant it when maybe she didn't.

And just who exactly had she been these last few years? The old Kim, the Kim that frequently saved the world, never would have said 'yes' to Raymond Beam's proposal. The old Kim probably might have seen the hints and signs of Raymond's descent into madness. The old Kim… The old Kim was deeply in love with Ron Stoppable. And when that love was cut off, the old Kim died a very slow death.

And maybe, just maybe, the old Kim was reborn when she stepped out of that cryogenic tube. She almost laughed when she realized just how intertwined her life was with this man. They both had been 'dead' in essence, Ron in the hospital, Kim in the tube. Both had been victims of a plot involving cloned versions of their ex-fiances. And both had undergone a sort of rebirth.

Ron certainly must have. She was surprised when he completely opened up to her like that. She expected some cryptic tale about the dark, mysterious origins of Ronin. But he bared his heart to her, was totally vulnerable to her. She knew if she had not at least said the words "I understand" to him, he would have been devastated by her subsequent tirade. And hurting him was the last thing she wanted to do.

So what did she want?

Other than to go back six years and prevent Ron from walking out of that hospital room?

Slowly, their lips parted and she pulled back a little, looking into his eyes. Neither of them said anything.

She felt like she was waking up for the first time in a long time. Almost the kind of awakening you have when you open your eyes and realize it's your day off from work, or school. No, it was more like finding out they'd canceled school for the day at the last minute, or the boss called and said the company would be closed for awhile, but you'll still get your paycheck. Suddenly there was a whole new life to begin, after being convinced that the way things were a few weeks ago was as good as it would get.

Certainly a part of her was angry about his falsified death, and his ending their relationship the way he did. But were the last six years Ron's fault? Was it his fault she wound up with a fiancé who meant less to her than even her memories of Ron? No one had held a gun to her head and made her accept Raymond's proposal. If her safety all those years ago wasn't Ron's responsibility, then how could her life in the last few years be blamed on him?

He had his reasons, shared them with her, and she'd understood.

What would be the purpose of holding on to her anger? Punishing Ron? He had tried to take his own life. Would adding to his pain lessen hers?

Of course not. Oh, they certainly would be discussing things in the days to come. There was a lot to sort through. And there would need to be some distance between her and her recent engagement. Though, now when she thought about Raymond, there really were no feelings of affection whatsoever. Ron had walked away from their relationship in the interest of protecting her safety. Raymond had put her family through times of suffering for his own ends.

But where did that leave things with Ron? Simply picking up where they left off six years ago was out of the question. A lot of their relationship had been torn down. But she believed there was still a good foundation to rebuild on. Kim realized her thought train had pulled into a conclusion.

The pivotal question was; did he feel the same?

"Guess it was a good thing you didn't get married yesterday, huh?" Ron said in a trembling voice. What was he afraid of? Did he fear this would end before it began, or was he frightened of being with her again?

She leaned in, closing her eyes and feeling the warmth of his breath on her neck. Her lips parted slightly and brushed against his, hesitantly at first, but he didn't seem to be resisting. She held his face in her hands, and kissed him deeply.

The building shook.

Kim sat bolt upright.

"Wow", Ron said dreamily, "Did the earth move for you, too?"

"Ron! That…well, yes it did… but I mean, something actually shook the building." She said, flustered.

"Yeah, well, Ron Stoppable has been known to rock the kasbah from time to time." he said, casually putting his hands behind his head.

She stared at him, incredulous.

"I can't believe I'm about to say this," she said in a shocked tone, "Focus, Ron!"

Ron sat up and looked at her, "I _am_ focused, Kim! Right now multiple Deathrays are tunneling under the building in order to clear away the debris from the cave-in so they can come in here and eliminate us. In the meantime, Jim and Tim are racing against time to cut a hole in the titanium plating and get us out. Frankly, I've been through one deathtrap or another, been held captive by just about every villain in existence, and I can give you a few examples of the times I've been this close to death waiting for the Twins to show up and save me. And in all those times, never once has the experience involved kissing – for the first time in more than half a decade – the only woman I've ever loved! Trust me, I am focused like a surgical laser beam!"

Kim was speechless.

The building shook again, this time a little more forcefully.

Ron let out an annoyed sigh and got up. "I'll go peek my head out and see what there might be to see," he said pulling on his gloves and mask.

As Ron crossed the room, headed for the spiral staircase, Kim caught movement in the corner of her eye.

"Ron!" she exclaimed.

He stopped and looked back at her, concerned.

"Walk back over here" she whispered loudly.

As he did so, he followed her gaze. The camera mounted on the ceiling of the surgical theater was tracking him.

Ron lost his temper. After changing the Lotus Blade to a medieval style mace, he smashed the glass between the observation room and the surgical theater. If the camera had audio capability, he wanted Ray to hear him very clearly.

"Ray!" he shouted, "Just thought you should know Kim's down here with me. I don't want to speak for her or anything, but judging by some of the signals she's been giving me the last few minutes, I don't think she's interested in marrying you anymore. Why don't you come down here and we'll talk about it? Bring one of your big, bad machines with you! You're gonna need its strength to help you pull my ninja boot out of your-"

At that instant, the building shook violently again. Ron hurled the mace and shattered the security camera. For the first time, Kim was seeing him as Ronin, knowing who it was under the mask.

_He's actually kinda hot,_ she thought to herself.

"Well, they know we're in here now, there's no point in hiding." He said, still sounding a little angry.

"I guess not," she said quietly.

She gazed into his eyes. The building continued to shake and shudder, but she barely noticed now. Suddenly it occurred to her that whether or not Ron wanted to be with her again might lie in what he was about to say. Was he listening to her a few minutes ago? Did he see her as a helpless girl in need of protecting? Or would he be able to let go, and trust her to handle herself?

_Stay here_, his eyes said, _stay safe. I will protect you and see that you come to no harm._

He raised his hand, and touched her cheek.

"Be careful," he said never taking his eyes from hers, "I don't want to lose you again, but I won't ask you to sit on the sidelines and watch either."

* * *

A very angry Ray Beam slammed his fists in rage repeatedly on the control panel. First, something had happened to the Kim Clone. Its artificial brain had been wiped completely clean. He couldn't tell exactly when this had taken place, but it was very likely the discovery of the Kim Clone was what brought Stoppable to Kim's lab. Then there was Stoppable's taunting little speech. Ron Stoppable was a weakling and a coward as well as a thief. It was so easy to thumb your nose at someone when they were a safe distance away from you.

Stealing Kim from him was the final straw. He could barely contain his rage watching her lavish the kind of attention on Ron that she never once showed to him. But when Stoppable dared him to come down to the lab…

Oh, he was coming down there all right. He was going to show Stoppable how a real man faced his enemies. Stoppable would be on his knees begging for mercy.

Ray picked up his chair and hurled it across the room with a roar.

He stepped out into the complex and flagged down the nearest clone.

"I will be taking control of this machine", he informed the drone. The clone stepped out of the Deathray suit and Ray climbed in. He made his way to the just-cleared corridor. Already a dozen Deathrays were on their way to the lab.

Ray was going to be Stoppable's lucky number thirteen.

* * *

OK, so things were going better than he'd hoped. Not that he was hoping she'd kiss him while they were trapped in her lab together. That actually caught him off guard.

Way off guard.

But it did seem to indicate she felt about him they way he felt about her. Still there was a worry on the back burner of Ron's mind. Was what just happened the result of the life threatening situation they found themselves in? Or did Kim really have those feelings for him? Less than a week ago she was engaged to someone else. On the other hand, she also thought her fiancé was a decent person, and that Ron was dead.

He watched as she walked to the top of the ramp and stood there. He wanted to tell her to hide, to let him handle things. But at the last second he realized that would not have been the Kim Possible he fell in love with. It was her confidence, her strength, her fiercely independent spirit that endeared him to her. Indeed, he actually drew strength from her, even in her absence. He realized all his missions as Ronin had been with her presence in the back of his mind. In essence, she had never left him, and it was with a sudden deep regret that he found himself wishing he'd never left her.

What could life have been like?

They wouldn't be trapped in a lab fighting for their lives. That was certain. Ron pushed those thoughts away. That way led back to self-blame and doubt. He was sorry for what he'd done, and he couldn't go back and change it.

The building shuddered as a dust cloud erupted from the corridor. The last of the debris was being cleared away.

Ron mentally kicked himself for not thinking about the lab surveillance equipment earlier. In all his excitement at finding Kim and battling the Deathrays, he'd forgotten about such details. He wondered how much of their encounter Ray might have seen. And had he heard anything?

Kim had decided to confront Deathray directly, banking on the belief that Ray wanted her alive. He'd had opportunities to get rid of her and didn't. Perhaps it was something they could use to their advantage.

More shuddering, more dust, and then the sound of slow deliberate stomping of metal on concrete. The first Deathray was coming up the ramp.

Ron tensed, ready for anything.

The machine stopped when it reached the top of the ramp, standing less than ten feet away from Kim. Then a few seconds of silence. Perhaps Deathray wasn't expecting this.

"Where is Stoppable?" it demanded.

"Where is Raymond?" she demanded back.

"I am Ra-"

"No you aren't, you're a clone! I want to talk to Raymond! The one that's _not_ a clone!" she insisted.

A few seconds of silence and then, "He is on his way."

_He wants us alive, _Ron thought to himself, _for the time being._

Ron was anchored to a spot on the ceiling with the claw and chain almost directly above where Kim was standing. Kim held her ground while Deathray seemed to be considering what to do next.

Ron had written off the Twins. They should have been able to cut through the titanium plating by now, but they must have been defeated by the two Deathrays that remained outside the lab the previous night. And forget the possibility that someone outside might hear what's going on. Even if he banged directly on a metal plate with something heavy, the plates were too thick to translate the sound to the outside. It looked like they were on their own, and Ron had no idea how they were going to get out of this.

"Move out of the way," Deathray ordered Kim.

"No." she answered.

The standoff continued.

Deathray seemed to be trying to figure out what to do next.

_Really not the brightest clone in the circus,_ Ron thought.

"Our orders are not to kill you," Deathray spoke at last. "But we are not prohibited from injuring you." It raised a massive arm and swung it at Kim.

Kim vaulted out of the way, hand-springing just clear of the arm. The Deathray moved forward a few strides to allow others to get into the lab. Ron guessed the lab could hold three or four at the most. The first Deathray was just beneath him now.

Ron let himself go, twisted in the air, changed the lotus blade back to its original form and drove it deep into the lead Deathray as he landed on it. Systems began to short out, electric bolts traveled along the blade and into Ron's suit. An arm came up to swat him away. Ron leaped straight upward, calling the blade to him with one hand while discharging the stored energy at the second Deathray with the other.

The second Deathray was driven back a pace. Claw and chain again, Ron latched it to a metal rafter and swung toward the second mechanoid. Before it had a chance to react , he brought up his feet and pushed as hard as he could when he made contact. The machine topped over backward and skidded down the ramp.

The first Deathray stumbled about as it tried to recover its failing systems. Kim tried to keep it occupied, leaping around in front of it and dodging the wildly swinging arms. She had no suit, no equipment, not even a grappler. Her mind raced, trying to think of what she could use as a weapon.

* * *

Three quarters of the way down the corridor, Ray ran into a traffic jam. He accessed the central mind.

"What's the problem at the lab?" He demanded.

"There is a battle in progress, and there is not enough room for more then three, perhaps four of you." The Ray Brain answered over the audio channel.

"Pull back all but the three lead units. Order them to keep Kim and Stoppable occupied but they are not to be killed. That honor is going to be mine." Ray growled.

"Acknowledged."

Ahead of him, nine Deathray units uniformly spun around and began marching back down the corridor. Ray had to turn around and go all the way back to let them pass. This, of course, only made him angrier.

* * *

The second Deathray managed to struggle to its feet and began lumbering up the ramp again. Ron turned his attention briefly to Kim to make sure she was all right. She ran straight up the nearest wall, pushed herself off, somersaulted and landed on the first Deathray's back and shoulders. Ron dropped to the floor, ran toward Kim's position and hauled himself up to where she was.

"I can't find the latch!", she shouted, "I think they're internal."

"Get clear!" he shouted back, "Let me try something!"

Kim leaped away.

The Deathray had recovered some of its working capabilities and brought an arm up to swat Ron off. Ron drove the Lotus Blade in deep again, and again he absorbed a huge amount of electricity into the suit. The arm was coming down upon him, and instead of leaping clear, Ron leaned out of the way and let Deathray's arm slam down upon its own head. The impact drove the blade deeper, causing more damage. Ron then imagined a shield with razor sharp edges, leaped clear of the machine, and called the Blade to him. The shield ripped through the side of the mechanoid, leaving a gaping hole, sailed toward Ron and changed back to its original form just before it reached him. Ron then discharged the stored energy into the machine's wound. The Deathray stood up bolt straight, and then fell over in a thundering crash.

"Ron!"

Ron whirled around to see Kim clutched in the grasp of the second Deathray. She had been momentarily distracted by what was happening to the first, and tried to move out of the way of her captor a split-second too late. Kim kicked and struggled but to no avail.

"OK!" Ron shouted holding up his hands in a gesture of surrender, "Just take it easy."

"You will surrender now," The machine ordered, "And await the arrival of Supreme Ray."

Ron tried to hold it in, but couldn't. He burst into laughter, "I'm sorry, who?"

The machine powered up its vaporizer and brought it near Kim's head, "Do not mock us."

"Yeah, OK, you're right, it's cool…just be cool, we'll wait for," Ron coughed a couple of times trying to hide his laughter, "Supreme Ray. Any idea when he'll be here?"

Suddenly, behind Ron came a sizzling, hissing sort of sound. The machine's attention was distracted. Ron called up his trusty battle-axe and heaved it, glowing white hot. The axe sailed through the air, seeming to gain momentum as it flew. It severed the arm Kim was clutched in at the elbow.

Then quite a few things happened at once. Ron sprinted to catch Kim before she hit the floor, calling up the claw and chain. He didn't quite catch her but did manage to soften the blow.

The Deathray powered up the blaster cannon on its remaining arm and raised it to fire at Ron.

The Deathray at the bottom of the ramp began moving up into the lab.

The hissing sound was replaced by a deafening thud of metal against metal.

Ron pried open the fingers of the severed arm, and he and Kim just barely dodged blaster fire as they vaulted away. The one armed Deathray moved aside to let the third machine into the lab and trained its blaster on Kim and Ron.

Finally, one final massive thudding noise and a section of the plating fell away from the loading doors. Daylight poured into the lab. A roaring kind of scraping sound filled the lab as the hole darkened again. Sparks flew as screeching, metallic sounds emanated from the newly created hole. Ron noticed the hole was larger than it needed to be, about eight feet wide and six feet tall. For reasons he was about to discover, this was why it had taken so long for the Twins to cut through.

Ron and Kim dodged more blaster fire as the third Deathray made it to the top of the ramp and powered up its weapons.

Then, shooting out of the newly created gap in the loading dock doors came a Deathray, skidding along on its belly, propelled by its thrusters. Both its arms were stretched out in front of it. The arms raised slightly and then were brought down hard on the floor, causing the machine to launch upward. The thrusters cut off and the machine landed with a thud on its feet. Instantly, beams blazed forth from weapons on each arm. One obliterated the single-armed machine while the other drove the third Deathray back down the ramp.

Ron could see a gaping hole in the newly arrived machine where the hatch should have been.

The Twins had a new toy.

Tim came bounding through the loading doors, looking for his sister and Ron.

"Come on!", he shouted at them, waving his arms in a beckoning gesture.

Kim and Ron sprinted for the gap as Jim, using the newly acquired mechanoid, picked up the Deathray Ron had disabled earlier and tossed it at down the ramp. It knocked the third one over and both went tumbling.

Ron stopped at the gap and turned to see what Jim would do. Oddly, Jim's Deathray fell forward on its belly again, facing down the ramp. Ron had to dive out of the way as its thrusters ignited. Jim just barely managed to hop out of the cockpit before his Deathray took off, streaking and skidding down the ramp and into the corridor. It collided hard with the two Deathray suits at the bottom and drove them back along the passageway.

"Let's go!" Jim shouted, running for the hole in the wall. Ron noticed distractedly that instead of one solid titanium plate, Final Option consisted of three titanium alloy plates a foot thick each and about four inches apart. No wonder it took so long to cut even a small hole.

Jim and Ron raced out into daylight as behind them, the three Deathrays began bouncing off the wall and each other. Sparks flew, metal twisted, the suits began to break apart. Finally, rocket fuel spewed forth and the explosion was almost instantaneous.

The fireball erupted in both directions at once. Jim ignited his rocket pack and caught Ron from behind, lifting him into the air. Tim had already flown his sister to safety. Ron looked back and saw fire belch from the hole. Inside the lab, everything was incinerated; equipment, the cryo-tube, and every bit of Kim's work. The building shook violently, but was held together by the plating.

* * *

Ray was just moving out of the far end of the corridor to let the nine units behind him pass when the floor began to shake and rumble. A dull roar began to crescendo behind him. He turned and looked down the passageway to see a fireball racing in his direction, the remains of a Deathray driven before it like some macabre and mutilated surfer. Panicking, Ray turned and sprinted the machine away from the corridor.

The nine units that were just emerging from the passageway took the brunt of the impact, slamming into each other like monstrous dominoes. Most of the fuel cells held together, and only one of the units exploded, driving Ray off his feet, skidding forward.

There would be no clearing the corridor now. It was sealed permanently.

But it didn't matter.

Ray stood up and accessed the Central Brain.

"Move the schedule up. I want to be ready to launch the attack in forty-eight hours." He ordered.

"We will be short by several dozen units," The Brain informed him placidly.

"They aren't crucial anyway. Just be ready to go as I commanded."

"As you wish."

Ray cut the signal. So they had won the first two battles, but they had no idea what was coming. Soon, Kim and Ron would be trembling in fear before him anyway.

Along with the rest of the world.

* * *

Jim alighted in the clearing, setting Ron down as gently as he could. Kim and Tim were there, waiting. Having already reunited with Tim, Kim ran to her other brother and hugged him tightly.

Ron turned away from the scene, "Wade? You there?"

"Yes!", Wade said, audibly relieved, "I monitored the explosion at the lab, but somehow I knew you wouldn't get caught in it. How'd everything go? Is Kim with you?"

"Yeah, she's here, she's safe," A horrible thought occurred to Ron, "Wade, do me a favor…"

He stepped over to Kim and the boys. Kim looked at him expectantly.

"What?" she asked.

"Just…checking something," Ron muttered.

A beam emanated from the katana logo on Ron's chest and scanned Kim.

"Bad news," Wade said quietly a few seconds later.

Ron's heart leaped into his throat.

"What?" he breathed, but somehow he didn't want to know.

Wade was silent for a few more seconds.

"You could have saved a bunch of money if you'd switched your car insurance. Oh, and that's the real Kim." Wade said, laughing by the end of his sentence.

Ron angrily pulled off his mask. Kim stepped over to him.

"So am I real?" she asked lightly.

"Yes…sorry, I just had to know." He said sheepishly.

"It's all right" She reassured him, "I probably would have done the same thing."

The Twins gave each other a look. Kim seemed to be standing a little closer to Ron than one might expect when two people were standing next to each other.

"Hmmm," Jim said, stepping over and peering at Ron, "Ron? Is that lipstick on your face?"

"Oh my gosh!" Ron muttered and began wiping his mouth furiously with his sleeve.

Kim turned red, then realized something, "Hey! I'm not wearing lipstick!"

The Twins broke out in uncontrollable laughter. They laughed loud, long, and with youthful abandon. Ron whipped his hand back down to his side and pulled his mask on. Kim turned a deep crimson.

"Tweebs", Kim growled and tried to cover up a smile. It was the first time in years she'd called them that. And again, a light seemed to come on in Kim's head. The twins had never once teased or even joked around with Raymond. They were quiet, and respectful, but Raymond never seemed to have much of a sense of humor.

They could tease Ron because he knew it was a sign of affection coming from them.

In the last week, Kim had almost lost her life, and so had Ron. They had just barely managed to escape the clutches of Deathray, and didn't even know if Raymond was alive or not. But for some reason, everything in Kim's world seemed to be falling back into its proper place. She felt happier than she had in a long time. It really did feel like morning, and the holidays were beginning.

"Maybe you should get to the hospital," Ron suggested quietly, "Make sure everything's all right."

"I'll have my mom look me over," Kim said, smiling at him, "Right now I just want to be at home. You coming?"

"Later," he answered, "I should probably drop in on my parents."

"We'll call you if it turns out something's wrong with Kim," Jim said helpfully, "Like if she needs mouth-to-mouth or anything like that."

The Twins laughed again. Kim punched her brother in the shoulder.

The Ninjet came in low over the trees and hovered above the clearing. Ron climbed in and turned to look at her. She gave him a small wave. The Twins waved enthusiastically and wished him well. Then the aircraft rose up and out of sight.

The Twins airlifted Kim home.

* * *

The reunion at the Stoppable household was a joyous one. Earlier that morning, Ron's mother had called the Possibles after seeing a news story about what had happened at the wedding. Kim's mom, having had a pretty rough couple of days with the shock about Ray and the clone and all, was glad to be able to give someone some happy news. She gushed about what a hero Ron was, how he'd saved everyone at the wedding and how he and the Twins were out trying to save Kim.

The Stoppables listened in disbelief.

And they were still trying to believe it when the ninja showed up on their doorstep a little while later.

Ron took off his mask and entered the house, suddenly feeling like an awkward, goofy teenager again. He sat down at the kitchen table and told them about why he had tried to fake his death, and how sorry he was for hurting them.

The Stoppables were just glad to have their son alive and at home again, and wanted to hear all about this hero work he'd taken up. Mom made him a huge stack of pancakes, and soon the parents were listening in rapt attention as Ron described some of the missions he had undertaken as Ronin. It was well into the afternoon before they were willing to let him go anywhere.

* * *

Over the next day and a half, Ron Stoppable stood watch on the roof of the Possible house. There hadn't been a single movement from Deathray after the battle at Kim's lab, and Ron was convinced he would come for Kim at some point. The Twins agreed and the three of them decided to stand guard in shifts. Of course, Global Justice still had Middleton on alert, and Wade did occasional patrols with the Ninjet, but if somehow Deathray managed to get through all of that, Ron wanted to be there waiting for him.

Kim had every intention of being at home anyway. She felt like she needed a vacation after the daily emotional roller coaster she'd been riding since the reunion, and just wanted to lock herself in her room for awhile.

Ron gave Kim her space. Mr. Dr. Possible set up the couch in the den for Ron. Even when it wasn't his shift, he intended to be right there should anything happen. Mercifully, the Twins took the first two shifts and allowed an exhausted Ron to sleep the rest of that first day. Ron would have night duty.

Ron found that he actually enjoyed the night watch. Most of his missions were at night anyway; somehow a trained ninja didn't feel all that comfortable in the daylight. But at night, the sun went down, the stars came out, and a huge world seemed to close in around him. Deathray seemed far away. Night just seemed more peaceful. He talked with Wade a little, but Wade was working on a couple of important things and couldn't spare too much time for conversation.

About three hours into his watch, Ron heard footsteps behind him. His instincts told him they weren't the footfalls of an enemy. He took off his mask and turned around.

"You should be sleeping," he said, not meaning it, "You need your rest."

She was in her pajamas, and had thrown on some slippers and a sweatshirt. Her hair was uncombed, she had no make-up on, and her pajamas were old and threadbare. Ron couldn't remember when Kim had looked so beautiful.

"So do you", she answered sitting down beside him.

"No argument here," he said affably, "What's up?"

"Me", she said with a tired smile, "I woke up about a half hour ago and realized you were up here. And I knew I wouldn't be able to get back to sleep, so I came up to see you."

Ron smiled at her and then looked off into the night.

They sat in a comfortable silence for a few minutes.

Ron had been thinking about something for the past couple of hours and decided he wanted to share his thoughts with her.

"I love you, Kim", he said quietly.

"Ron, I don't think-"

"No," he cut her off, "Hear me out, please. I meant what I said back at the lab. I never stopped loving you. Ever. Remember the first time you said you loved me? It was at that party we had in Drakken's lair. I remember feeling so surprised at hearing you say that to me. I mean, that was the night after the prom! We'd only been dating for a day, but you told me you loved me. Why is that?"

Kim thought back to that night, "Because I knew I did. It wasn't like we just met, we'd been friends forever. When we got together, it just seemed natural. I knew I loved you, so I thought why shouldn't I tell you?"

"Exactly," Ron agreed, "I know I love you. Why shouldn't I tell you? What magical deadline do we have to reach before I can tell you how I've always felt about you? I know you're just coming off an engagement, I know you may not feel the same way… and I know the kiss at the lab may have just been a result of two people being in an intense situation… but that doesn't change how I feel about you. Nothing does."

She gazed at him. "What do you expect from me?" she asked evenly.

"Nothing." he answered instantly.

"You don't want anything from me?"

"That's not what you asked," he responded, "You asked if I _expected_ anything from you. And the answer is 'nothing'. I don't have a right to expect anything from you. As far as I am concerned, no man has a right to expect anything from you. There isn't a man alive I can think of who's earned to the right to be with a person as great as you."

"Oh so you've consigned me to a lonely existence, then?" She joked.

"That's up to you, I suppose. But you asked what I _expected._ As for what I want, well, that's totally different…"

"So what _do_ you want?" she asked after a few seconds of silence.

"Just you," he answered simply. "You, with me, for the rest of my life. I made the colossal mistake of walking away from you before. I don't know why things turned out the way they did, but you're not engaged to someone else anymore, and I would be a complete idiot if I didn't at least tell you how I feel."

She sat in silence, trying to process what he'd just said.

"Tell me about your life." Ron asked, interrupting her thoughts.

"Huh?"

"Your life," he repeated, "Tell me all about it. I've told you about the last six years of mine. Now I want to hear about yours."

And she did. And like Ron had back at the lab, she told him everything; everything she felt when he walked out, and everything she went through. She told him about the one or two missions she went on after Ron had ended things and how she felt incomplete when it came to hero work. She told him every detail of her relationship and subsequent engagement to Ray, and confessed to Ron how she'd told Ray all about him.

Ron listened to it all and only interjected once.

"Did you know Shego is involved with Ray?" he asked.

"They're working together?" Kim was shocked.

"Well, yeah, but I mean, they're _involved_, and I would guess they have been for some time." Ron said, allowing the true meaning of the word to sink in.

Slowly, it dawned on Kim. Then, it occurred to her that perhaps she wouldn't need to do a whole lot of processing regarding her relationship with Raymond. Between his cheating on her and becoming everything she had ever fought against her whole life, the relationship with Raymond suddenly seemed utterly devoid of any meaning whatsoever.

By the end of her story, the light was gray in the east, and the sun would soon be up. Ron didn't offer any opinions on anything she had told him and she didn't ask. Finally she yawned and stretched and said she'd probably better get some sleep.

As she got up to leave, she turned to him, took his head in her hands and kissed him. Not deeply or passionately, or even for any length of time; just a brief, warm kiss.

"What happened wasn't the result of an intense situation," she told him softly, "And I, too, meant what I said at the lab. I just wanted you to know that."

He watched her walk across the roof and hop down to the balcony below.

Throughout the rest of that day, Kim found herself trying to coordinate what little she needed to get done with getting some sleep in anticipation of spending Ron's watch with him. When she went up to visit him that night, she found him talking to her brothers.

"What's up?" she asked sitting down to join them.

"We were talking about Deathray," Jim informed her.

"We think he's up to something big," Tim added, "Which may be why we haven't seen or heard anything from him recently."

"So what do we do?" she asked.

"I think it's time we took the fight to him," Ron answered.

* * *

Early morning, and they were back at Deathray's old lair in the warehouse district. They had spent a couple of hours at Kim's lab and did some calculations based on the direction the corridor had faced and its length. If Wade's guess was correct, the corridor had ended somewhere underneath the edge of the warehouse district.

Kim was back in her old blue and white battlesuit, and had been fitted with an earpiece and microphone so she could talk to Wade. Ron was in his Ronin outfit, but he was also carrying a backpack, the contents of which he wouldn't reveal to anyone. The Twins remained outside the lair, in case Ron and Kim should find anything, ready to call in Global Justice.

"There's got to be something here" Kim insisted, "It's too much of a coincidence that the corridor should end in this area."

"I've scanned everything" Wade informed them, "I do have an idea, but I don't think Ron's going to like it."

"What is it?" Ron asked.

"I still have the sonar scans I took the night you almost drowned," Wade said, "I can take another one and compare the readings."

"That doesn't sound so bad," Ron said.

"I'm afraid in order to get an accurate comparison, you're going to have to be in the same place and position you were when I took the first scan." Wade said reluctantly.

Ron's heart began to race. He didn't pay much attention to the tank when they came in, for obvious reasons. Now he was going to have to get down and crouch in the very spot where he almost died. He looked at the tank with dread.

"We don't have to do this", Wade said quietly.

"Any other ideas?" Ron inquired. The fear in his voice was palpable.

"No, sorry." Wade responded.

Ron stepped to the edge of the tank and looked down. It looked slightly different, but it felt the same.

"OK," Ron said quietly, "Let's get this over with."

Ron climbed down into the bottom of the tank. The tension was thick. Memories of that night came flashing back through his mind. He began to sweat; his breathing was rapid.

(_aw, ninja boy looks scared)_

Ron knelt down at the spot where he'd been chained.

_(Ray is Deathray!)_

"Beginning the scan", Wade said, sounding far away.

Ron's hands shook, his heart pounded in his chest.

_(Kim! I've abandoned you)_

All he could see were the faces of Shego and Ray as they glowered down at him.

_(I'm so sorry)_

He could feel the water surging up around him, engulfing him, rushing into his lungs. Ron's head began to feel heavy.

Then, the presence of someone else.

Kim had knelt down on one knee behind him and put her hand gently on his shoulder.

"It's OK, Ron," she said soothingly, "Don't be afraid."

All the pain, all the anguish, and all the fear evaporated instantly. The tank was empty, the lair was quiet, everything was is it should be.

"OK", Wade said, "Got it. Give me a minute to analyze the readings."

They stood up, and Ron turned to look at her.

"That's twice you've saved me from this pit," He said indicating the tank, "Did I ever tell you you're my hero?"

Kim blushed, smiled and cast her eyes downward, then looked back up at him with a newfound shyness. What he said meant the world to her, and she never forgot it.

"I got something" Wade said, "I'm getting sound waves bouncing back from a location that wasn't there in the first scan. Behind you and to your right. The far corner."

Kim and Ron moved over to the spot and examined the wall. There was a bank of computers in front of it, and nothing else. Kim took a close look at the corner where the two walls met.

"This has been welded in place" she said, indicating the wall. "Wade, can you scan and see what's behind it?"

Beams emanated from Ron's chest.

"I can't tell what's behind there," Wade said, "But I can tell you it's hollow on the other side."

Kim and Ron nodded at each other. This was what they were looking for.

Wade contacted the Twins who came in with a couple of blowtorches and got to work. Sometime later, they finished cutting a hole large enough to walk through if they stooped over.

Inside, it was completely dark. The Twins turned on flashlights and shined them about. They were in a short corridor with another wall on the far end. They moved to it and heard odd noises coming from the other side. Once again, the twins got busy with their torches.

No one was prepared for what they found behind that door...

* * *

Proximity alarms. Someone was coming in through the old lair entrance. Ray pulled up a security camera image. Look who just got to the party? And right on time, too!

He accessed the central brain.

"I have the intruders on my monitors" the brain confirmed, "All units are powered up and ready to go."

"Have the extra clones converge on their position" Ray ordered.

He was ecstatic. Just a few minutes until launch and look who comes wandering in the back door. The Possible house was the first target on his list, and they had saved the trouble by delivering themselves right into his lair. This was a good sign. He would be successful today. And they would be dead.

* * *

No one said anything. They were speechless. Ron finally found words.

"Go!" he said turning to the Twins, "Get Global Justice on the alert and ready to move in!"

They nodded and left, heading back through Deathray's old lair.

Kim and Ron were still trying to absorb what they were seeing.

They were standing on the edge of a massive cavern-like room roughly the size of a European soccer stadium. There was a long ramp that led downward away from them to the center of the floor below. On the bottom surface of the cavern were thousands and thousands of Deathray mechanoids, all lined up in perfect symmetry. Directly in the center of the floor was a large, black metallic rectangular box, connected to dozens of smaller similar boxes surrounding it. Just on the other side of the network of metallic boxes stood a gigantic Deathray. It was the size of a five story building, and bristling with every kind of weapon imaginable. The floor seemed to be covered with some kind of reflective metal.

There wasn't an army on earth that would be able to stand up to this.

"Wade," Kim asked, "Is that thing you've been working on ready to go?"

"Uh, yeah" Wade said dumbfounded. He couldn't believe what he was seeing either. "Just tell me when you're ready."

"Looks like Raymond's been busy for quite a few months", Kim said.

"With an army of clones, I'm sure the work went quickly," Ron responded.

They stood there, unsure of what to do next.

"KIM!" came a booming voice over a p.a. system, "RON! Welcome to my party!"

"Why do they always have a p.a. system?" Ron asked her.

Behind them, a huge metal plate slid into place over the door they had just cut through. They were trapped.

"You know," boomed the overhead voice, "I really didn't think you'd be stupid enough to come on your own accord. But look who I'm talking to; the buffoon and the world's dumbest Nobel Prize winner."

Overhead, the hum of engines and machinery, the cranking of gears. A crack seemed to appear in the ceiling. Daylight spilled into the enormous room. The roof slowly withdrew in two directions like a retractable dome on a baseball stadium.

From their vantage point above, it appeared to the pilots of the Global Justice patrol helicopters that the warehouse district had suddenly split in half and was sliding outward in opposite directions.

Kim looked at Ron. He seemed to have a far away look in his eye.

"Ron?"

"It's all right, KP," she hadn't heard that in years, "Trust me."

"It flatters me that you've come for a front row seat," The voice droned on, "I'll be sending some of my assistant around to help you get where you need to go."

Kim looked and saw roughly a dozen clones closing in on them from all sides. Incredibly, Ron began walking down the ramp.

"Now, if you'll excuse me," shouted a voice from the center of the room. Ray Beam was on come kind of hover craft, floating toward the head of the supersized Deathray. "I've a world to conquer. And just so you know, I'll be starting with the complete and utter destruction of Middleton. I hope you said goodbye to your families this morning."

And at this, Ray Beam actually let loose with a maniacal laugh. Frankly, it would be too embarrassing to try and describe it.

Ron stopped halfway down the ramp and took out the Lotus Blade. He held it aloft before him.

"Surrender now, Deathray!" He shouted, "This will be your only chance to go peacefully."

Ray stepped into the gigantic mechanoid and powered up. He might have vaporized them right there, but he wanted them to watch as he made their families and loved ones suffer, as the world bowed to him in trembling and fear. He decided their deaths would come last.

Ron turned to Kim, "You'll know when to give Wade the signal."

Kim wasn't entirely sure what he was talking about, but said nothing. Ron looked so strange, as though his mind were a million miles away.

The clones began to close in. Ron remained unmoved, holding the Lotus Blade up before him. It began to glow a bright white.

The retractable ceiling finally finished opening. On cue, with a deafening roar, more than ten thousand Deathrays ignited their thrusters. The giant fifty-foot tall Deathray began lifting off from the ground. Slowly it struggled to get into the air.

Ron remained standing perfectly still. He let go of the Lotus Blade, and it hovered in the air before him.

Kim turned her attention to the clones. Whatever Ron was doing, he would need some protection. The clones advanced, and Kim went to work. A quick hand-spring up the ramp and a leap into the air, she took down two clones; one with each foot. She landed, threw a quick right hand at another and then backed off a couple of paces. Turning, she saw three coming up the ramp, almost upon Ron. Kim took three running steps and dropped, sliding down the ramp feet first. She threw her legs up and took out two, grabbing the third by his leg and pulling him down. A hard elbow to his chest and he didn't get up again.

Back and forth Kim went. Up the ramp, driving the clones back, and then down, driving back more. Jabs, quick punches, round house kicks, flying kicks. Not one clone made it within reach of Ron Stoppable.

Ron stood perfectly still, his mind filled with one thing. The Lotus Blade flew straight out away from him and seemed to dissipate somehow, as if it were made of mist or fog.

The gigantic Deathray began to pick up speed. The entire cavern shook with the roar of ten thousand mechanoids launching into the air.

In the place where the Blade should have been, appeared an intangible, swirling, almost misty image of a flower; a lotus. White with its petals closed. The Lotus began to grow and expand, though it never took on solid form. Always it appeared as a misty apparition. It flew straight at the gigantic Deathray, continuing to grow. As it approached the behemoth machine, its petals spread open. Like an enormous, lotus-shaped hand, its petals enclosed and curled around Deathray, halting his upward progress. Slowly it turned in mid-air. Deathray increased power to his thrusters but seemed unable to work against the might of the Lotus. Finally, the Lotus was turned downward; holding the gigantic Deathray facing belly up toward the sky.

"NOW, WADE!" Kim screamed as she took down two clones.

"Good luck," Wade said in her ear, "See you two on the other side."

Hurtling out of the heavens, a black blur against a blue sky, the Ninjet streaked straight downward moving almost faster than the human eye could follow. The aircraft bulleted through the open roof and obliterated itself against the gigantic Deathray, splitting the mechanoid in two at the mid-section. The wreckage of the jet thundered downward.

Wade had constructed an Electromagnetic Pulse Disruptor and strapped it into the cockpit of the Ninjet. Originally he was going to set the craft down near the opening of the old lair and off the EMP, but when he saw the roof slide open, he decided to change plans. Crashing into the gigantic Deathray was a last second decision. Immediately after the collision, he triggered the device.

Suddenly the air appeared to ripple outward from the wreckage of the Ninjet in ever widening arcs. There was a deep, throbbing, deafening hum after which all sound seemed to instantly cease, as though the very sound waves were sucked out of the air.

The EMP waves spread out in all directions, ultimately reaching up to a mile radius.

Everything electronic within that radius instantly shut down.

Deathrays began dropping out of the air like a massive metallic hail storm. Four units managed to get beyond the pulse, and GJ helicopters, which had been pulled back in anticipation of the EMP, took off in pursuit.

Kim grabbed Ron's arm and sprinted back up the ramp. Deathrays fell and exploded all around them. Several fell on the ramp in front of them but tumbled over the side. The two sections of the gigantic Deathray slammed back to the floor of the cavern with an earth-rumbling crash.

Most of the clones died on impact, but many survived long enough to realize their electronic latch mechanisms were useless and perished in flames. Neither Ray nor the Central Ray Brain had thought to delete any of the pain receptors in the central brain or any of the sub-brains. Every ounce of pain the clones felt was transferred back along the network. The sub-brains began to overload and short out due to the overwhelming amounts of pain they received and had to process. The Central Brain disconnected itself form the Network and broadcast a signal that would only be received by relatively healthy clones. In the end, some fifty clones survived.

Much later, Wade would speculate correctly that the reason the Central Ray Brain and the clone signals were unaffected by the EMP was thanks largely to the ultra low frequency the Central Brain was broadcasting. Since the floor of the massive cavern was covered with a reflective metal, the signal was amplified a million times over and thus was unaffected by jamming equipment or the EMP. The Central Brain and its power source were housed in the same type of experimental titanium alloy the Twins had used at Kim's lab, therefore it, too was unaffected by the EMP.

In addition, because the receivers in each of the clones' skulls worked on the same type of electric neurological energy as the human brain, they remained unaffected.

Ron seemed to come out of his daze when they reached the top of the ramp. One or two Deathrays were still plummeting out of the sky. They disintegrated on impact with the floor and erupted in flame. Parts of the cavern floor were engulfed in an immense conflagration. Flames reached far into the sky. Ron retrieved the backpack and unzipped it, showing the contents to Kim. She looked at him with an amused smile.

"Are you serious?" she asked.

"Absolutely, KP", he said, grinning at her.

The central Brain called all healthy clones to it. Slowly they assembled close to the Brainbox. The Ray Brain was furious at the one who called himself 'Supreme Ray'. He should have vaporized Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable when he had the opportunity. And though the Brain was angry with Ray, it was unable to do anything about it. As an insurance measure, Ray had written in an inhibitor file that prevented the Brain from rising up against its master.

So the Brain turned its thoughts to instant vengeance. Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable had thwarted Ray's plans for world conquest almost before they had begun. But they would pay, and pay dearly. They had last been seen at the top of the ramp. The clones turned their attention, and there they were, actually descending the ramp toward them. The clones fanned out in a large semi-circle.

Ron and Kim felt ten years melt away from their lives. The contents of the backpack were having their intended psychological effect on both of them. There was no fear in either of them, no timidity, no hesitation. They walked down the ramp as if they owned that lair.

And what was in the backpack?

Two pairs of charcoal gray Club Banana cargo pants, and two black three-quarter sleeve military style sweaters. Kim's sweater, of course, was short at the midriff, leaving it bare.

Ron knew the battlesuits would be useless once the EMP was triggered. And if they put on their old mission clothes, that might just give them the mental edge they needed to walk out of this alive.

Team Possible was back, baby.

The Central Brain chuckled, the laugh manifested itself through each of the clones. Fifty clones chuckling the exact same chuckle; the effect was eerie and creepy.

Admittedly, Ron and Kim were still a bit nervous. They hadn't really gone up against fifty opponents in hand-to-hand combat. But the only way to get to the Ray Brain was through them.

"Isn't this amusing," said the fifty clones in unison, "The teen heroes have returned for one final showdown. I am going to make you wish you had perished in the flames. You can't possibly expect to come out of this alive. After all, the odds are fifty against two."

Suddenly, into their midst dropped a raven-haired, blazing green, unbridled fury. Her fists flared up with jaded fire.

"Fifty against three", she said coldly.


	15. Chapter 14

When I get a story in my head, one of either two things happens. Either I think about it for a short while, and then it fades from memory, or I sit down to write it, in which case it becomes an obsession. I barely eat, sometimes don't sleep, don't watch any TV…it consumes my free time. Since April 13, all my free time, and even some of my sleep time, has been directed into this story. Frankly, I'm a little exhausted. The epilogue will probably come out Tuesday, after which I have a ten day vacation out of the country. When I return, I will be spending a few weeks reading the works of everyone who took the trouble and kindness to leave a review; frankly it's the very least I can do to return your kindness. If anyone has a specific story they want me to read, please feel free to drop me an e-mail with a link, and I'll be happy to oblige.

And after that…well, yesterday an intriguing idea for a REUNION sequel popped into my head. I'm interested to see if I can make it work. But that's on hold for at least a month.

In the meantime, my most grateful thanks to:

A.J. (hope this was quick enough for you, thank you for your kind words), AriGriffin (thank you for reviewing), Widow Shark (I put a shout out to you in this chapter, see if you can spot it. Thank you so much for your always kind reviews), LKillingsworth (I always look forward to your reviews, and I extended this chapter just because you said you like the lengthy ones – tossed in the flashback at the last minute), JPMod (I hope my version of the final rumble is satisfactory), oneredneckgoddess (thank you), BluJae (I count it an honor that you took the time to say you usually don't write reviews, and then left such glowing ones, thanks much), Jezrianna2.0 (I hope my lack of technical expertise wasn't too distracting, thanks for all your kind words), knuckz (thanks), Willk1989 (I'm kind of sad, too, but what you said is greatly appreciated), kimnronever (your compliments make my day), pokey (sometimes 'speechless' is very high praise, thank you for it), Melissa Ivory (I hope Shego performs to satisfaction), aimtbj (if I had the energy to write a thousand more, I'd gladly oblige. Thank you so much), Kimberly Ann Possible (your compliments really mean a lot to me), Emotionally Attached (Two words; Thanks Much!), Daeron Blackoak (intriguing ideas), sehnsucht 792 (thanks for all the reviews), Fuzzie Muzzie (I look forward to voting for you one day), Sestren NK (Also eagerly looked forward to your reviews as well), recon228 (my grateful thanks), Lurker (welcome to the party), Jokerisdaking (yeah, that really is creepy hurriedly turns off mind probe device what a coincidence, huh?), Miss Piratess (welcome aboard, thank you so much for your kind words…and, actually I blushed a little when you called me darling…), JasonX (very interesting ideas. Might be intriguing to see what kind of influence Bonnie might have had on Kim), Spooks-A-Lot (yep, last chapter, plus a bonus epilogue. Thanks for all your kind words), RainingInsanity (this one's long, too, sorry. Thanks for your reviews).

And thanks to all who didn't leave a review but read it anyway, I hope you found it entertaining.

And now our REUNION is complete…(the song lyrics are the second verse from "Could It Be")

* * *

Chapter 14 

_It's kind of funny, you were always dear._

_But who'd have ever thought that we would end up here?_

* * *

The clones temporarily halted their advance. They weren't the only ones surprised. 

"Shego?" Kim blurted out, incredulous.

She glanced at Kim and Ron, then did a double take.

"You guys are still wearing your old high school clothes?"

"Well, actually," Ron began, "I had Wade overnight them out from Club Banana Online. I wasn't able to find-"

"Maybe we should have this conversation later, Ron." Kim suggested, "What I want to know from Shego is: why?"

Shego looked out at fifty Ray Beams.

"I have my reasons," she said darkly.

"Good 'nuff for me," Ron stated, "Kim?"

"We certainly could use the help." Kim agreed.

"SO glad you approve," Shego mocked, "Can we get this started already?"

"Watch out for the swarm," Ron advised, turning serious, "They may get frustrated and rush us all at once. If that happens, make sure you get up over the top of them or you're finished."

"Surprisingly good advice," Shego acknowledged, then shouted to the clones, "You guys comin'?"

They charged before Shego had finished her sentence. But only twelve of them came, four clones for each of them. The rest stayed behind in an ever-tightening semi-circle.

Shego blasted two, driving them back and then took on the other two. One took a roundhouse kick to the face, the other Shego tossed almost casually into the nearest fire. Extreme pain caused the Central Brain to disconnect from it.

Ron reached for the Lotus Blade and discovered he hadn't called it back to him. No time. He lunged forward, both fists finding targets, then dropped to a crouch and swept his leg through the feet of the remaining two, bringing them down. Two were knocked unconscious while the other two withdrew to the semi-circle.

Kim smacked two heads together, simultaneously vaulting over them, then spun in a roundhouse kick, knocking out a third. The fourth withdrew.

At first, no one really noticed that the semi-circle was advancing slowly, but deliberately. It tightened in on them, causing them to involuntarily retreat. Some twenty yards behind them was a sheer wall. They were very slowly being driven toward it.

Fifteen clones attacked, five each. Ron tried to call the blade to him but it did not come. Shego took down all five of hers. She was throwing herself into the task with dark enthusiasm. Each face of Ray Beam's that she drove a fist into brought her a grim sort of satisfaction.

Three clones regained consciousness from the previous skirmish and rejoined the semi-circle.

Ron knocked out three and the other two withdrew. Kim didn't knock out any but all of hers withdrew after a couple of minutes.

Again, Team Possible and Shego were driven back almost without noticing.

Ron saw that Kim was already beginning to tire, having fought twelve clones just a short while ago. This brought to him a realization. Very likely the Central Brain had focused its full attention on the battle, and was sending out small groups of clones to gather information rather than conquer them. Their moves, strengths, and any potential weaknesses were being studied. But there was something else going on.

Eighteen attacked this time, but only three went for Kim. Six attacked Ron and nine went after Shego. Kim threw two quick cross-jabs, knocking out two clones, the third withdrew. She looked to Ron, who had already driven off four. Shego, however, was overwhelmed. She'd dispatched three before the others managed to take her down. Two held her while four began raining blows down upon her. Kim broke it up, knocking out two and driving off the others. She helped Shego to her feet.

Again, a few regained consciousness and rejoined the semi-circle. They were roughly ten yards from the wall now.

Kim was breathing hard, Ron and Shego were beginning to tire. Ron finally caught the underlying strategy at work. The three of them were being worn down. Soon they would be too fatigued to resist an onslaught.

"We might want to start thinking about using lethal measures," Ron said hurriedly.

"You mean you haven't yet?" Shego asked, incredulous.

"We don't want to kill anyone," Kim panted, trying to catch her breath.

"News flash, Kimmie, they want to kill you." Shego snapped.

"Ray wanted me alive before…" Kim began.

"That was Ray," Ron said, "But I don't think he's calling the shots here. Who knows if he's even still alive?"

Twelve clones rushed, all of them at Shego. Ron and Kim bounded in to help, knocking out two each. Shego drove off all but one, who kept coming back at her. She shouted something unintelligible and began rapid-fire punching its face. Suddenly it slumped in a heap at her feet.

Kim stared at it with an odd look on her face.

"I don't think you hit it hard enough to kill it," Kim said.

"Yeah," Shego agreed, "I think the signal from the Central Brain was cut off."

"Just because you were tenderizing his face?" Ron asked.

"Maybe it couldn't take the pain," Kim speculated.

They were almost at the wall now.

"I think the Princess is on to something there," Shego said, "If the Central Mind is trying to concentrate on the battle, a certain amount of pain might be too much of a distraction."

"And force it to cut off the signal," Ron concluded, "That's the weakness we've been looking for. We need to put some serious hurt on these guys."

"What do you think I've _been_ doing?" Shego snapped.

Twenty came at them this time; half the remaining clones. Five went for Ron, Five for Kim, and the rest for Shego. Either the Central Mind saw her as the biggest threat, or sought to punish her disloyalty. Ron backed up a few paces and discovered they were at the wall. He pushed off it and charged into his group of clones. Kim turned and ran up the wall a few paces, pushed off, and spun in the air, disabling three as she landed. Shego was brought down again, blazing green energy shooting in all directions. Ron employed several painful maneuvers and permanently brought down three clones. The other two withdrew. He ran headlong into the group that had Shego pinned down. Punch, flying kick, a twist of an arm the wrong way. One went down for good, the others withdrew.

The Semi-circle ceased its advance. Between it and the wall, Shego and Team Possible were surrounded. Kim was practically hyperventilating. Shego had taken a pretty good beating, and Ron was trying to catch his breath. He figured they had two, maybe three rounds left in them, and if they didn't turn the tide, all would be lost.

More clones regained consciousness and rejoined the group. There were some thirty-five remaining.

Nine clones attacked – three each – fought briefly and then withdrew. But before anyone had a chance to catch their breath, nine more charged. Again, three for each of Team Possible and Shego, and again they withdrew after a brief skirmish. Nine more came as the others were withdrawing. Then it was ten clones each wave, divided differently. Sometimes Shego would get the larger group of clones, sometimes Ron or Kim would.

There were no respites between fights now. As one group of clones would withdraw, another would attack immediately. Only two or three were permanently disabled. Ron saw there were still more than thirty clones remaining, and he was nearing exhaustion.

Kim took a hard punch and went down. Ron moved to help and was set upon by five clones. Shego was similarly occupied. Kim's clones began dragging her toward the semi-circle. She struggled but was too exhausted to break free. Ron became desperate. If Kim was taken back to the clones, they'd very likely finish her off en masse. Ron fought harder, but his group withdrew. He broke and ran for Kim, but five more clones moved in on him. Instead of fighting, however, three of them tackled him and held him down while the remaining two pummeled him mercilessly.

Shego was still standing, but was occupied by her own group of assailants. She tried to reposition herself closer to Kim but was driven back by a new group of attacking clones.

Kim was dragged into the semi-circle.

Ron began to lose consciousness.

Shego was taken down.

Then, shadows overhead. Something caused the daylight to dim for a second. Thirty clones were suddenly distracted and looked up.

Two parachutes.

Jim didn't even wait to land. Ten feet above the semi-circle he detached from his parachute and dropped on to a group of clones, permanently shutting down three. He came up swinging hard, driving fists into faces and feet into midsections. Tim landed on the outside edge of the semi-circle and immediately went to work.

The Central Mind was momentarily caught off guard which caused the clones to hesitate for a fraction of a second.

For Shego, it was all the time she needed. She blasted two clones up and off of her, drove a fist into the face of a third, and moved to help Ron.

Jim worked his way over to Kim's position and stood near her, driving off clones while she struggled to her feet. Tim continued to work the flank, permanently taking out three more.

Shego blasted two clones off of Ron and brought a hard knee up into the face of a third. Ron roused himself and looked up to gaze at the one who had saved him. For a brief second their eyes met, then Shego looked away. All she could see was Ron's face in the tank as water surged up around him, finally consuming him altogether. Still looking away, she held out her hand. Ron took it and stood up.

"Thanks," he said quietly, but Shego was already off, charging at the now disintegrating semi-circle.

Ron suddenly remembered Kim and charged in behind Shego. He caught sight of the faces of the twins and realized the course of the battle had turned in their favor. This gave him his second wind and he fell upon the clones with a newfound enthusiasm.

Kim held back a few seconds, trying to catch her breath and recover her senses, then moved in near her brother.

The semi-circle collapsed all together and the clones found themselves surrounded. Their numbers dwindling, they began to pack themselves in a tight knot. The Central Mind frantically tried to come up with a tactical solution but was constantly distracted by the incoming flashes of pain.

Twenty clones left. They broke suddenly, and tried to scatter, but seven of them were disabled. The Twins, Team Possible, and Shego formed a tight line and charged the clones while they were attempting to regroup. It was a charge almost borne of desperation and necessity. The clones couldn't be allowed to re-form their line or those knocked unconscious might re-join them. Fists flew, feet sailed, bodies thudded, green energy blazed…

Two minutes later, the battle was over.

The victors stood, trying to catch their breath, and looked around. Disabled and unconscious clones were scattered about them. Ron made his way over to Jim and shook hands with him.

"I hope saving our butts doesn't turn into a habit with you guys." Ron said in an exhausted voice.

"Aw," Jim said with a grin and a dismissive wave, "It looked like you guys had it under control. We just came in to clean up."

"Oh yeah," Kim said sarcastically, "We _totally_ had everything under control."

Tim looked at his brother, "We should probably go see what we can do about disabling the artificial mind before too many of these guys wake up."

Kim nodded, "I should probably thank Shego for-"

But Shego was gone.

* * *

Ray struggled to crawl out through the tiny opening. The latch mechanism had somehow been disabled, but the massive Deathray was cut in half, leaving him a way out. It took forever to worm his way through the inner workings of the giant mechanoid. But he was almost out now. 

He was still trying to figure out what exactly had just happened. One second he was lifting off into the air, his army of Deathrays doing likewise. Then something had halted his upward progress. Despite his having turned the thrusters to full power, whatever was holing him wasn't affected. In fact, it had turned him belly upward to face the sky. The next moment his mechanical beast was torn in half, and he was falling back to the floor of the cavern, with his army falling all around him.

Silently he cursed himself, knowing deep down that Kim and Stoppable had something to do with it. How many times had they thwarted him? What compulsion had kept him from outright ending their lives when he had the chance? He vowed to himself there would be no elaborate traps next time; no tanks full of water, no missing an opportunity to vaporize them. If he ever got the chance to end their lives, he'd take it.

But now, all thoughts turned to escape. He had to get away, start again. Once again, he'd been this close, and he'd tasted his impending victory. The very idea of a trembling world, throwing itself prostrate before his power and might had become an instantly addicting drug; one from which there would be no quitting. Next time there would be more and bigger Deathray units, with smarter and more evil clones at the helm.

Wires and servos tore at his clothing as he hauled himself out of the machine's torso. It had landed on its back, facing upward. He pulled himself up on to the huge chest plating.

"Now, I just _know_ you weren't thinking of trying to get away," came a cold, dark voice.

Ray looked up to see Shego, her fists blazing, waiting for him.

"Where've you been?" he growled unafraid.

"Waiting for this moment to arrive. Get up."

He let out an annoyed grunt and got to his feet.

She calmly walked over and stood in front of him. She was very clearly furious, almost trembling with anger.

Ray regarded her casually, then suddenly took a swing at her.

Shego caught his fist with her left hand, and drove her right into his face. Ray sailed up off his feet and went sprawling.

"You want to hit me now?" Shego challenged, "Come on, Ray, get up and hit me. Let's see what the big bad Deathray can do without one of his machines!"

His whole life, Ray had pretty much gotten by on good looks, intimidation, and rage. People tended to back down whenever he became threatening. A couple of times he'd been in fights; a street-brawl or two, or a bar fight. On several different occasions, Ray had taken a hard punch to the face and gotten right back up to conquer his opponent.

To him, this was no different. He took a punch in the face, got right back up.

And received the thrashing of his life.

Shego didn't just hit Ray, she hammered him. Fists came so quickly and in so many places, Ray eventually got confused and found himself trying to block punches that had already landed several seconds before.

Shego probably could have knocked him out with a single blow, but that would have defeated the purpose. Ray couldn't feel pain if he was unconscious.

When she grew tired of hitting him, she picked him up and body-slammed him to the chest plating.

Ray began to do something he'd never done in his entire life. He begged for mercy.

"Hmmm" Shego said, pondering, "I'm gonna have to say 'no way'." And she picked him up again and again slammed him back down. Ray lay on his back in agony, raising one hand above him in a pitiful gesture of self-protection. Shego raised her fists, preparing to unleash the full of her might upon him. A hand touched her arm.

"Don't do this, Shego," Kim said quietly.

"You don't know what he's done to me," Shego protested angrily.

"Did he try to drown you in a tank full of water?" Kim asked, still speaking softly.

Suddenly, all the fight went out of Shego. Again, she saw the image of Ron, a tear running down his cheek as water surged up over his head. And she also felt the memory of Ray's arms around her as she helped him celebrate the death of Ron Stoppable. The greenish glow left Shego's fists as she lowered them and took a step back.

"Thank you," Ray panted, still in agony, "Thank you, Kimmie Cub."

Kim gasped and was instantly revolted. She felt she would be sick. Only her father had ever called her that, and the idea that this man would use the phrase in a sick attempt to somehow endear himself to her was nauseating. Even when seriously injured, Ray could be cruel.

"Don't call her that," came an enraged voice, "You don't ever get to call her that!"

Before anyone realized what was happening, Ron had Ray by the neck with one hand, and had his other raised in the air. There was a blinding white flash as the Lotus Blade reappeared and literally became part of Ron's arm. The silvery-white metal curled itself around Ron's forearm at one end, and tapered down to a point at the other, with one side razor sharp.

Ron pointed the blade toward Ray and it stretched itself forward, stopping less than an inch from Ray's left eye. Ron knew all he had to do was think the thought, and Ray would be instantly lobotomized, or worse.

Ray looked down the length of the blade and into the eyes of a better man than him. He expected to see rage, and hatred, but instead what he saw was a righteous fury. He realized that in the purest sense of the phrase, Ron was defending Kim's honor. Such an insult from Ray could not possibly go unpunished.

On his knees, Ray felt something icy and suffocating surging up around him. It rose, engulfing his torso and chest. A single tear escaped his eye as it surged upward and completely consumed him.

Ray Beam was drowning in fear.

The blade seemed eager to leap forward and end Ray's life. Ron felt himself on the verge of letting it go. Then he felt a hand on his arm.

It was Shego.

"Trust me," she said quietly, "He isn't even close to being worth it."

Ron heard her, but didn't take his eyes off Ray. Anger burned hot within him.

"She's right," Kim said softly from the other side of him, "Please, Ron."

Ron hesitated, the blade just short of plunging through Ray's head.

"Ron", Kim said softly again, putting her hand on his arm. Shego took an almost respectful step back.

Ron tore his eyes away from Ray and looked into hers.

"I love you." She whispered.

Ron released his grasp. Ray slumped into a pathetic heap, curled up into a fetal position and whimpered like a frightened puppy. The blade unwrapped itself from Ron's arm and flew straight upward. It glowed an intense bright white, seemed to take the shape of a lotus flower and then disappeared completely.

Ron held his hand up to try and call it back to him.

But the Lotus Blade was gone.

* * *

On the peak of a very lonely mountain in Japan called Yamanuchi, there is a school that has been training eager young minds in the ways of Ninjitsu for almost two thousand years. 

The master of this school is known simply as Sensei.

He was trying to sleep, but felt a familiar, deep restlessness within him. He rose and went outside, gazing at the stars in a crisp, cold sky. He walked to the base of the statue of the school's founder – the warrior known as Toshimiru – and gazed impassively up at it.

He didn't think the statue was a very good likeness, and was originally against its being placed in the school at all. But that year, they had come under attack from a particularly vicious feudal governor who wished to posses the secrets of the Lotus Blade, and perhaps become Shogun and overthrow the Emperor himself. He had brought a great army upon Mt. Yamanuchi, but the students within defended the school with skill and honor. In an act of celebration, they petitioned Sensei to have a statue of Toshimiru placed within the school as a monument to their victory. Initially he refused, but they were quite adamant, and in the end, he relented.

_But it looks nothing like me,_ he mused, wondering what his students would think if they knew that Sensei and Toshimiru were the same person.

Then, a familiar feeling, as though the very air were charged with electricity. Before him, at the base of the statue, there appeared a misty, smoky image of a lotus flower. The image seemed to stretch itself and solidify until finally, a katana was lying at the base of the statue.

The Lotus Blade had returned home.

Quietly, Sensei stepped forward and almost lovingly took the blade into his hands. Soon the young warrior Stoppable would come, perhaps in a few days, or perhaps in a few weeks. He would come with an apology.

_Master Sensei, _he would say, _I am sorry. I have lost the Lotus Blade._

Then Sensei would note the familiar look of amazement on Stoppable's face as he was shown the very Lotus Blade he thought he had lost. And, like so many young warriors before, Sensei would ask Stoppable to tell him his part in the tale of the blade. In return, Sensei would share the secret of the blade with Stoppable; that since its forging, the Blade will, on rare occasions, choose a warrior who has wandered away from the path of his intended destiny, and help him find his way back to it. When the bearer of the Blade has achieved the correct path once again, the Blade returns to Yamanuchi to await the arrival of the next young warrior in need.

As for the fact that he was almost two thousand years old… Sensei would keep that to himself. As the keeper of the Blade, it was a secret that he alone was to bear. Oddly enough, whenever he shared the Blade's secret story with a young warrior, they never asked him how it was that he knew all these tales of the bearers of the Blade. They always assumed it was a history, passed down from generation to generation.

Sensei carried the Blade back inside, curious as to which wayward warrior it would choose next. Would it be the man with the simian hands and feet? That one seemed to have wandered far away from the path of his destiny.

* * *

Under any other circumstances, Shego probably would have been given a light charge; some misdemeanor or accessory to whatever. But considering her record, she was deemed a Criminal Menace and hauled away to await trial. As a final insult, she and Ray were put into the same police van and carted off to jail. Ron and Kim tried to explain to Global Justice what she had done, but in their eyes, Shego had only helped _after _Deathray's plans were thwarted. Team Possible promised Shego they would testify on her behalf when the time came. 

Ray couldn't stop his pathetic whimpering. In his mind he saw the smoldering wrath in Stoppable's eyes. In addition, he heard Kim's words to Ron over and over. Throughout their entire relationship, she had never once said those words to him the way she had whispered them to Stoppable. When she said it, she meant it from a deep place that only Ron Stoppable was able to reach. At that moment, despair had washed over Ray, adding itself to the fear that was consuming him. He realized in that instant that if he had been sincere with her, if he had really loved her and stayed faithful to her, she might have said those words to him in a like manner. Ron Stoppable had been given a second chance with the true love of his life, and it dawned on Ray that he was the one who had given Ron that chance. He stared pathetically at the floor, whimpering and muttering to himself.

When the fires had died down enough in the lair, a Global Justice helicopter with a grappling cable was brought in to haul away the Ray Brain. Many clones had regained consciousness, but by that time, GJ agents were swarming all over the place, and the remaining clones were no longer a threat. Jim and Tim had been busily cutting away the anchor plating that held the Ray Brain in place. When the helicopter began to lift the Brain away, a massive shower of sparks erupted from it. Every clone in the lair suddenly slumped to the floor. The mind had shut itself down entirely rather than suffer the humiliation of being hauled away and studied in a lab somewhere.

Ron and Kim walked up the ramp, out the old lair entrance and were immediately set upon by the media. Kim had plenty of experience with reporters and knew that 'no comment' was basically the order of the day. Ron did, too, but was thrown off by a question from one reporter who'd gotten wind of a rumor.

"Mr. Stoppable," she said chirpily, "There's a rumor going around that you and the mysterious hero known as 'Ronin' are the same person. Can you confirm that for us?"

"I…um…actually…no comment." Ron stammered.

"Aw," the reporter pretended to pout, "Can't you tell us anything about the mysterious ninja hero? What's he like? What does he do in his free time? Is there a Mrs. Ronin back home?"

Unable to resist, Kim leaned over Ron's shoulder, "There will be."

Global Justice agents rushed in and shooed the reporters away. Ron looked like he did that day he opened his first Naco royalties check. Dazed and happy.

Agents led them to a waiting van. They were to be taken back to GJ headquarters for a complete debriefing.

The cell phone belonging to the agent nearest Ron began to ring. The agent answered it and then handed it to Ron.

"Someone named Wade," the agent informed him. Ron was surprised at first, but then he thought if his friend the super genius could build a device that emitted a controlled-radius EM burst, then he certainly could track down the cell phone closest to him.

"'Sup Wade?" Ron said, still in a bit of a daze.

"Dude, I just caught the live feed from the TV News! Did Kim just say what I thought she said?" Wade asked excitedly.

"You heard it, too? I thought my mind was maybe playing tricks on me!" Ron said, almost relieved.

"I got two words for you, my friend," Wade chattered in his ear, "Boo Yah!"

"That's my line!" Ron protested, laughing, "Now what am I supposed to do? Air guitar?"

* * *

"AAAAAHHHHHH YEAH!" howled the man with the blonde mullet, pretending to wail away on a guitar that wasn't there. "Dude! This nitro blower is totally going to make my sweet ride even sweeter! Seriously!" 

Late August. The Middleton Auto Show was in its third day. Team Possible had gotten a tip from Wade that Motor Ed might be interested in the experimental Nitrous Oxide Blower that would be showcased that afternoon. Ron and Kim were patrolling the show floor, keeping their eyes open. Their heads weren't quite in the game, however. The summer after graduation – that summer of bliss - was drawing to an end. Soon Kim would be heading off to Go City University and Ron would be staying in Middleton. Neither of them were looking forward to parting company.

When time came for the Upperton Race Equipment company to unveil their new blower, Motor Ed and his crew came busting in as if on signal.

"Step away from the blower, car show dude! Seriously!" Ed barked. His boys threatened and menaced the crowd. Kim vaulted over their heads and landed in the fray.

"Not today, Motor Ed," she said taking up a combat stance.

"Aw, no! Not Red! Why you gotta harsh my good time?" Ed wailed. "Where's the little blonde bro? The one who likes tacos?"

"They're called Nacos and you can't get them anymore!" Ron protested, scrambling up on to the showcase platform, "Bueno Nacho closed down!"

"Whatever, bro, I didn't ask for, like, your life story! Seriously!" Ed pulled out a walkie talkie and spoke into it, "Check it! We're ready to blow this place! Red and Blond Bro are comin' with!"

Rufus scampered out of Ron's pocket and up on to his shoulder, chattering indignantly.

"Oh, yeah, and their little bald rat's comin' too. Man, that thing freaks me out! Seriously!"

"You're not going anywhere," Kim informed him.

"Wrong again, Red! Seriously!"

The roof above them crashed inward as a massive grappler lowered itself into the convention hall. People scattered in a panic. The grappler attached itself to the showcase platform and a helicopter began to haul the entire thing upward toward the roof. Kim fired her grappler, latching it to the wall and tied the other end around the Nitro Blower. The cable pulled the Blower off the platform and it sailed through the air to bang harmlessly against the wall. Motor Ed had been denied his prize.

Ed looked down at the receding convention hall, Police were beginning to converge. Going back for the Blower was out of the question. Naturally, this bugged him.

"Aw, that does it, Red!" he said, forcefully grabbing Ron by the arms.

Ron wailed and struggled, but Motor Ed was a big beefy guy. Plus he had some serious B.O. which made Ron's eyes water.

"Let him go, Ed," Kim threatened.

"Maybe I should let Blond Bro go for a skydive! Seriously!" Ed said, holding Ron menacingly near the edge of the platform.

"Let him do it, KP" Ron shouted, "You can swoop in with your blaster pack or parachute or whatever and save me."

Kim's face fell, "No parachute!" she said with slight dismay.

"No blaster pack?" Ron inquired.

"No."

"Mini hang glider?"

"No."

"Bungee cord?"

"No."

"Pocket-sized helicopter?"

"No such thing, Ron."

"Are you guys gonna go on like this for very long?" Ed inquired, "'Cause I'm, like gonna die of old age before this conversation ends! Seriously!"

Kim ignored him, "I was packing for college when Wade called. All I brought was the grappler, and it's down there. My mind was totally distracted."

"Seriously?" Ron asked.

"Seriously, Ron! I wanna go to college and all, but I don't want to leave you behind." Kim said sadly.

"OK" Ed interjected again, "I am gonna blow harsh chunks all over Middleton if you guys don't knock off the kissy face attitude. Seriously!"

Ed's crew took Kim by the arms and held her firm. As long as Ed held Ron near the edge of the platform, she wouldn't risk his falling by trying to fight her way out.

The helicopter began to descend. They were on their way to Ed's lair.

Kim tried twice to break free of her captors, but was unsuccessful. Soon they found themselves in yet another elaborate deathtrap.

They were in a room about the size of a school gym. In the center was a huge sunken tank, about twenty-five feet wide, that ran the entire length of the room, and was filled with a rather nasty looking liquid. Kim was on one side of the tank, Ron was on the other. Spanning the sunken tank was a very narrow beam about the width of a two-by-four. Slightly above them, Motor Ed stood glowering in triumph. Neither Kim nor Ron were tied up, though they both had been given some kind of electronic component.

"OK", Ed said over the intercom, "Listen up, 'cause I'm only gonna say this once. Seriously. You guys will have, like, ten minutes or something to do this thing. That'll give me enough time to get away or whatever. Anyway, one of you has to cross that beam and get to the other one. If Red plugs her half of the switch into Blond Bro's half, then the door will open and you guys get away. Seriously."

Ron and Kim looked at each other, _this shouldn't be too hard._

Ed continued, "If you don't make it in time, the floor of that tank's gonna raise up and the room will totally flood."

"What's in the tank?" Ron inquired.

"Battery acid," Ed replied.

"Dude! That's nasty!" Ron exclaimed, arching his eyebrows at Ed. Excitedly he turned to Kim, "Hey! I just arched my eyebrows at an arch foe! How cool is that?"

"Whoa!" Ed barked, "I thought my cousin Drew was your arch foe!"

"He is," Ron told him.

"Dude!" Ed responded, "You can only have one arch foe. That's what 'arch' means. You can't like, have a bunch a arches! There's only room for one! 'Arch foe', 'arch rival', 'arch enemy'; stuff like that! Seriously, how did you manage to get past high school, bro?"

Ron glared at him and then thought of something, "Can you have, like an 'arch football team', or is it limited to just foes and their synonyms?"

"Aw, man, I am so not having this conversation. Enjoy your acidic doom little blond bro. So long Red," and at that, Ed wailed on his imaginary guitar, "AAAAAAAH YEAH!"

Ed turned and stomped out.

"OK" Kim began, "This should be eas-"

Suddenly the lights went out.

"Aw, now that's just wrong!" Ron yelled, his voice echoing throughout the room.

Both Ron and Kim blinked and tried to let their eyes adjust to the darkness, unfortunately it never happened. Whether they closed their eyes or kept them open, it made no difference. Not a single bit of light was getting into that room.

"KP, you still there?" Ron asked in a worried tone.

"Where else would I be?"

Their voices echoed. It was hard for each of them to tell where the other was.

"So what do we do now?" Ron asked.

"First, let's carefully make our way to the edge of the tank. Get down on all fours and crawl so you won't go falling in when you reach the edge."

"Yeah…OK", Ron sounded nervous.

Kim felt nervous. They had less than ten minutes left.

"OK, got it." Ron said. Even at normal volume, his voice echoed. She couldn't tell exactly where he was. "Now I'm guessing you want me to find the beam, right?"

"Right," Kim replied.

When they both found their respective ends of the beam, Ron asked what she wanted to do next.

"Well," Kim said nervously, "On of us has to cross this thing. And I don't think it's gonna be you."

"Why not?"

"Ron, you often have trouble successfully crossing freeway overpasses without tripping and falling. Sorry to sound so ferociously critical, sweetie, but it's true."

"Well…I don't think…" Ron began in protest, then gave up, "Yeah, OK, you're right."

"I'm not too sure about this myself."

"Hey, KP, it's cool!" Ron encouraged her, "You can do anything, remember?"

"Yeah, but one wrong step and my Club Banana pants will be acid washed."

"EEEwww! That is so eighties!" Ron observed in a horrified tone. Then an idea came to him, "Hey, why don't you tumble across?"

"What?"

"Yeah. I mean, in cheerleading you always tumbled in a perfectly straight line, no matter what!"

"Yeah, but that was on a gym floor or a football field. Not a tiny beam."

"Don't think about the width of the beam," Ron advised, "Just follow the sound of my voice, and do it."

"OK," Kim acknowledged, "But your voice is all echo-y. Can you make a softer sound?"

Ron whistled, "How about that?"

"Perfect," Kim affirmed, "I know exactly where you are. Keep whistling."

So Ron whistled. Unsure of what exactly he should whistle, he settled on their song; 'Could It Be'.

In the darkness, Kim smiled. Reassured, she took a few steps back, and then ran straight at the point where she hoped the beam crossed over the tank.

She made it without once missing a step. Well, that is until she tumbled into Ron, who didn't want to get out of the way for fear he might cause her to stray off the path.

They stood up, a little shaken, but all right.

"Got your half of the switch?" Kim asked.

Ron handed it to her.

"Man, I was worried you wouldn't be able to find me" Ron said, audibly relieved.

She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him. Behind his head, she put the pieces of the remote switch together and the lights came on. A few feet away a door opened.

She pulled back a little and looked into his eyes.

"We will always find our way back to each other," she said with conviction, "Whether we're on opposite sides of a room, or opposites sides of town, or even on opposite sides of the world…"

* * *

Ron was roused from his memories by the announcement that the plane was on final approach to Tokyo International Airport. Kim had offered to come with him, but Ron felt this was something he should do on his own. He wasn't even sure he had permission to bring her to the school. Ron was, of course, on his way to apologize to Master Sensei for losing the Lotus Blade. 

But we all know what happens when he gets there; we've already covered that.

Seriously.

* * *

_And every time I needed you,_

_You've been there to pull me through._

* * *

Deep in the high desert of southern Nevada, in the vast, empty, sagebrush wasteland of the Great Basin, just north of what is known as Area 51, there is a mountain called Snakeback Ridge. It's a lengthy ridge that runs north/south and twists in two places. From the air, it looks like a giant Diamondback Rattlesnake making its way north across the desert. Dug into the northern end of this mountain, is a huge complex known to many as the Snakeback Ultra-Maximum Security facility. The workers call it SUMS. The inmates call it the Dead End. This is where the world's Supervillians serve their sentences; even those from other countries. 

The only way to get to it is a lonely, nondescript two lane road that cuts through the northern section of Area 51. There are no signs for it, no highway markers. Most people don't even know it's there. In order to get there, one must travel through the many layers of security that protect Area 51. It's one of the most heavily guarded facilities in the world. The guards are there to keep some people out, and others in.

The day was blisteringly sunny, with temperatures nearing the one hundred and ten degree mark. Along that two lane road traveled an ordinary-looking rental truck. At least, that's what it was supposed to look like to the general public. Inside, however, were two Global Justice agents riding up front. In the rear were two prisoners, locked in their own iron link cages.

Ray barely looked at Shego. She didn't look at him at all. Shego couldn't bear the memories of the recent months; the nights in Ray's bed, his abuses that ran the gamut from physical, to mental to emotional. The day Kim Possible was shoved into a cryogenic tube, seemingly for good, was supposed to be the culmination of Shego's vengeance upon her arch foe (and yes, she realized you could only have one of those). But it had been a hollow victory. In fact, Shego didn't even feel it was a victory at all. It certainly wasn't worth what she had to go through to get it. And now, to heap insult upon injury, she had to endure the long ride to Dead End with Ray Beam sitting across from her the whole time.

Ray kept looking at her, but he kept seeing Kim's face. The face of what might have been. The fear Stoppable had instilled slowly receded, but the despair never left him. He was facing a lifetime in a facility, not with hardened criminals, but borderline insane egomaniacal monsters. He told himself he wasn't one of them. He was just poor, simple Ray Beam who got caught up in circumstances that weren't his fault.

Suddenly, the truck lurched, skidded, corrected itself, and then lurched again. Ray and Shego couldn't see out the windows, but they could see forward through the front windshield. A soft, yellowish glow seemed to envelop the entire truck. It lurched again and then actually flew into the air.

The guards let out involuntary yelps of surprise. Ray shrieked and cowered on the floor, Shego tried to get a better view of what was happening. The truck rolled over sickeningly on its side, still flying through the air. The guards were tossed about the front of the cab. Slowly, the truck came to a stop, hovering five feet above the highway, nose pointed downward.

"This message is for the two guards in the front of the vehicle," came a booming, electronically enhanced voice from seemingly everywhere, "I am going to set you down in ten seconds and disengage the Gravimetric Beam. You will then have five seconds to exit the vehicle. If you do so, no harm will come to you. If you do not comply, I will be forced to eliminate both of you."

Ray perked up at the voice.

As loathe as she was to talk to him, Shego was curious, "Do you recognize the voice?"

"No", Ray answered absently, "But it has to be one of the clones. Somehow, the Brain tracked me down and sent a clone out to rescue me."

"Don't you mean us?" Shego asked.

Ray looked at her with contempt, "We'll see, honey. If you play your cards right."

The van set down, the yellow glow disengaged, and the two guards scrambled out.

Then the yellow glow re-engaged and the van flew into the air once more, traveling north, across the desert, away from the highway.

After a few minutes traveling like this, the truck was set down roughly, on its side, in the middle of the desert. The yellow glow disengaged. From outside came a low roar; possibly the sound of a jet engine. Whatever it was came to a rest and the engine powered down.

Then a different glow, this one reddish/purple. The truck began to vibrate, subtly at first but with increasing violence as the seconds ticked by. Eventually, the truck was shuddering with great force. Those inside were thrown off their feet. The violent shuddering jarred the rear doors off its hinges and latches. The door simply fell away, unable to take the stress. At almost the same time, the doors to the cages fell away, also unable to take the severe spasms wracking the vehicle.

Then, the reddish/purple beam disengaged.

By this time, the occupants of the truck were pretty fairly shaken up. Shego had trouble standing, and so crawled out of the back of the vehicle. Ray, however, did get to his feet. He stooped until he made it to the back of the truck and then straightened up, chuckling. He knew they wouldn't let him be taken to prison. Already, he was planning his next world-conquest plot.

As he stepped around the truck, to the side where the top of the vehicle was facing, Ray suddenly found himself enveloped in that soft yellow glow. He lost his footing, but didn't fall. In fact, he hovered some six feet off the ground.

"Oh goodness!" came a friendly voice, "Look what I've done. You know, I'm always so clumsy with these ray devices, especially the Gravimetric Ray. I usually don't operate them myself."

Ray looked toward the source of the voice. He could see that the yellowish beam was emanating from a small circular hovercraft. Oddly enough, there didn't seem to be any kind of protective canopy over the two-seat cockpit. He'd never seen an open-air hovercraft before.

Odder still was the source of the voice. He had black hair, pulled into a pony tail in the back. He wore a long, dark blue trench coat - even in this hundred degree heat – with a black belt tied round it. In addition, he wore matching dark blue pants with black boots. He had a scar under his left eye. But the most curious thing about him, however, was that – as best Ray could tell through the soft yellow glow of the beam holding him six feet above the ground – the man seemed to have pale blue skin.

Ray waited patiently for the stranger to disengage the Gravimetric device.

"Just a minute my good fellow, I think I need to toggle this switch." The blue stranger informed him. He reached into the cockpit and seemed to jiggle something.

Ray was slammed violently to the ground.

The beam did not disengage.

"Oh my," the blue man said, the friendly tone of his voice unchanging, "That wasn't it at all, was it?"

Ray was lifted again to hover six feet above the ground. He was dazed, his head throbbed, and he felt one or two bones might be broken.

"Perhaps if I fiddle with this switch over here," The blue man said, reaching into the cockpit again. He appeared to toggle another switch.

In rapid-fire fashion, Ray was slammed repeatedly against the side of the truck. Again and again, the beam drove him with alarming force into the almost unyielding surface of the vehicle.

He felt things crack, break, or puncture. It hurt just to breathe. He could feel his skull beginning to swell. The truck was severely dented.

"Wait a minute!" said the blue man, still in a friendly tone, " I think this might be it!"

Ray was lifted twenty feet off the ground.

"Yes!" the blue man cried in triumph, "This is definitely the correct switch!"

The yellow beam abruptly disengaged. Ray fell through the air, tumbling lazily like a rag doll. He hit the corner of the truck where the roof met the side panel. The impact cause him to half-spin wildly before slamming back down onto the ground.

Ribs were shattered. It was pure agony just to take even shallow breaths. His head pounded with a pain so fierce, he couldn't open his eyes. His legs were bent backward the wrong way beneath him. He struggled to say something but his jaw was broken in three places. Yet for all his injuries, there was barely any bleeding. This meant he would likely live a lot longer, and thus endure much worse pain, than if he had bled to death.

Perhaps the blue man was aware of this. He tucked his arms behind his back and casually strolled over to where Ray Beam lay, crumpled up in a heap on the ground.

Under normal circumstances, there was always some kind of twinkle in the blue man's eye. He carried about him an air of evil mirth, or nefarious glee, or perhaps insidious joy. He was evil, and he liked it, and it showed. But when he got to Ray, and crouched down beside him, all of the mirth left him. There was no hint of evil glee in his eyes, or on his face. He leaned in close to Ray, his face a portrait of murderous, icy blue rage.

"Now" the blue man began, speaking slowly, "I know you're in a great deal of pain. But I also know that you can probably hear the words I am saying. So I want you to listen carefully to what I am about to tell you."

He leaned in closer. Ray tried to get away from that face, but blinding pain kept him from moving. The blue man spoke in a very low, very cold, very dark voice.

"If you ever come anywhere near Shego again, you will not live long enough to regret your error."

He stood back up, and some of the evil mirth returned to his face.

"Oh, and one more thing. Stay away from Kim Possible, too. She's _my_ arch foe. Get your own." Then he waved cheerfully at Ray, "Tootles!"

He strode around to the back of the truck. Shego was still there, half sitting, half lying on the ground, watching everything that took place with shocked awe. He stood there and looked down at her, taking one hand from behind his back and extending it to her, but saying nothing.

_Time to come home_, his eyes said.

She reached for his hand and took it, struggling to her feet.

He led her back to the hovercraft.

"When did you get out?" she asked him weakly.

"A month ago," he replied, "I've been searching for you everywhere. I didn't think you'd actually go to Middleton."

"How did you find me?" she persisted.

"I got an anonymous e-mail telling what you've been up to lately, and what he's been doing as well." He answered, "The e-mail told me where the truck would be and that I was not to harm the guards. We can discuss all this at home"

"What home?"

"Grrr! Fine!" He barked in frustration "We'll find a home, and when we do, we'll go there and discuss it. Now let's go. GJ helicopters are probably on their way."

Shego stood up in the passenger seat and hollered, "Ray! I guess I forgot to tell you back there. I _did_ recognize the voice. I was just curious whether or not you did."

The hovercraft rose up and out of sight.

A few minutes later, GJ helicopters did come, and they recovered Ray.

He spent the next year drinking all his meals through a straw and enduring thousands of hours of painful, agonizing rehabilitation.

* * *

Well beneath the surface of the earth, well below the floor of a great hollowed out room where dozens of GJ agents were examining everything they came across… deep below, in a small room sat a large metallic box roughly the size of a telephone booth. 

They thought it had shorted out when the helicopter had tried to lift off. They were right, of course, but apparently no one had considered the possibility that information can be transferred. Sometimes even through the air. Or the ground.

The room had been dug by clones, unbeknownst to even Ray himself. The Brain box was put in place, and then the passageway leading to the room had been filled back in, leaving only one thin fiber-optic cable to connect it to the outside world. It sent out a signal, but the clones weren't receiving.

Still, via the fiber-optic cable, the Ray Brain could travel across the length and breadth of the internet, seeking out useful information.

In fact, one such piece of information was what caused it to send out the anonymous e-mail with the details of Ray's prison transfer. It felt if it threw in the line about not harming the guards, no one would think to come looking for it, but rather might suspect a GJ agent; perhaps Kim Possible herself.

It had a pretty good idea of what the recipient of the e-mail might do if he knew Ray had been less than kind to Shego.

It couldn't harm Ray directly, but nothing prevented it from giving information to anyone who might wish to harm Ray. And if they did, well, that was just incidental.

Now it would bide its time. Some day it would find a way to exist in the world above as its own independent, sentient entity. Perhaps it would find a way to revive one of the clones, and he could come and dig it out.

Then, of course, there was revenge to be plotted.

Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable would one day have a horrible reunion with the Ray Brain.

Not today.

But someday…

* * *

_Now it's clear,_

_I've been waiting for you…_

* * *

Ron spent a week in Japan. He hadn't intended to stay quite that long but Sensei made him tell every detail of his story, beginning with the moment Ron took possession of the Lotus Blade. It took close to three days for Ron to tell his tale. When it was complete, Ron had one or two questions. 

"When I took the Blade with me, you said I had always been its master, and that it had been waiting for me to come and claim it. But how can I be its master if it no longer belongs to me?"

"Destiny", the old man replied, "The Blade recognized that you had wandered from your intended path. It chose to serve you until you found your way again."

"So, is the Blade alive?" Ron asked.

"I do not know."

"But haven't you ever been curious?" Ron persisted.

"Of course," Sensei replied, bestowing a very rare smile upon the young warrior, "And perhaps one day my curiosity may be rewarded. But I do not know the true nature of the Lotus Blade. It may be its own living entity, or perhaps it simply responds to those who have the true heart of a warrior. I have no answers regarding this."

Ron simply accepted this. Sometimes you take things on faith, and know that there aren't always going to be answers.

"Now you have told me your tale," Sensei continued, "In return I will share with you a story from the Lotus Blade's past."

And for three more days, Sensei told Ron the story of the young Irish Princess, Kimarrah and her companion, a Roman Legionnaire named Ronaldus who came to Japan in the year Four Hundred A.D. and, with the assistance of the Lotus Blade, helped to defend the Japanese homeland from invasion by a vast and mysterious army of Simian warriors.

Back home, Kim was initially disappointed she didn't get to go with Ron, but found good use for her time. She sat down and wrote out every detail of the memories she had of her relationship with Ray. It took her most of the week to complete it. And, when she was done, she burned it. It was simply a symbolic gesture, of course, but it had a cleansing effect on her. Her relationship with Ray was – simply put - in the past. There was no sense in dwelling on it. She was ready to move on with her life.

Ron returned hoping to find Kim waiting for him at the airport. He was disappointed, but he supposed she had a lot on her plate.

Turned out Kim was waiting for him at the Stoppable house. She begged his parents to go out to dinner – her treat – so she could have a conversation with Ron. She had come to a decision, and she felt she should tell Ron about it first, before informing anyone else.

Ron walked in and found her sitting at the kitchen table. A shoebox was sitting in front of her.

"How was your trip?" she asked.

"Good," he answered, "What's up?"

"Wade and I have a gift for you, and then there is something we need to talk about." She informed him. Kim pulled out the Kimunicator and set it on the table, Wade appeared on the screen.

Ron's curiosity was piqued.

Kim very carefully opened the lid of the shoebox and set it down on the table.

Out of the box scampered a naked mole rat.

"Awwww," Ron said with a wistful smile, he wasn't sure how to feel about a replacement for Rufus. This was just a naked mole rat. Rufus was special. "You got me a naked mole rat. That's cute."

The mole rat spotted Ron, stood on his hind legs, threw his hands in the air and excitedly squeaked, "Hey!"

Startled, Ron involuntarily scooted his chair back a couple of feet.

"It talks?" He asked, confused.

Kim smiled, "I don't think he gets it yet, Wade."

"I decided to borrow a page from Ray Beam's playbook," Wade informed him, "I thought it should be put to good use at least once."

"I don't understand," Ron continued. The mole rat gazed at him, waiting for Wade to finish his explanation.

"You remember those summers Rufus spent with me, don't you? Part of what he and I did was make a complete map of his brain, so I could study it in my spare time. I guess you could call it an early version of a brain scan."

"Brain scan!" The mole rat confirmed.

"So," Wade continued, "I put together the pieces of the map, asked Kim's permission if I could use her artificial brain technology, mixed it with a little cloning from a whisker Rufus had given me, and voila! Say hello to Rufus Prime."

"Hi!" Rufus squeaked, waving at Ron. Then he scampered up Ron's arm and nuzzled his cheek.

"Awww!" Kim said, a tear escaping her eye.

Ron was still dazed, "I thought you were ethically against cloning, Wade."

"And I promise never to do it again," Wade said solemnly, "Rufus knows all about what happened. He's aware that he's a clone, and that a few years have passed since his original self died. I just simply uploaded the knowledge into the artificial brain, which, by the way is sitting right here. I have it linked to our satellite network. Rufus can go anywhere in the world you go."

"Booyah!" Rufus cheered, and chattered excitedly.

"Roo… " Ron found himself choking up over the word, "Rufus… Buddy!"

Ron took his friend and held him in his hands. Rufus simply stood, gazing at him. Tears burst forth and flowed freely from Ron. They were tears of relief more than anything else, he felt all the mistakes he had made were melting into the past.

"Awww" Rufus said, and put his arms around his friend's face as best he could.

Kim sat and watched the reunion; one or two of her own tears flowed as well. Wade excused himself and the Kimunicator blinked off. After a few minutes, Kim spoke up.

"Rufus!" the mole rat turned toward her, "Remember that other thing we talked about?"

"Oh, yeah!" Rufus squeaked, and jumped back into the shoe box. He came out again and scampered over to Ron holding something in his paws. Ron examined it closely.

It was the engagement ring he had given Kim all those years ago.

Ron looked up at her.

"Been doing a lot of thinking this week," she began, "And I realized there have been two men in my life who asked me to marry them. And I said 'yes' to both. Well, I've decided I can't go through that again. I don't want anyone else asking me to marry them, ever."

Ron's heart dropped to his feet.

"This time," she continued, "I'm making the decision for myself. It's my turn to choose."

She got up, came over to him, and dropped to one knee.

"Ron, I love you", she said looking into his eyes, "And I'm asking you to marry me."

They set a wedding date for six months hence.

* * *

The wedding was a simple Jewish ceremony with Protestant elements thrown in to acknowledge the heritage of the bride's family. 

It had been a busy six months for Kim and Ron. Ron got them a modest house, though it came with an attached lab for Kim's work and a secret basement with it's own hidden entrance for their superhero work. Ron was able to slip back into the role of Kim's sidekick, but on occasion, he went missions as Ronin. Eventually they came to find a comfortable balance between them. When Ron was sidekick, she called the shots during missions. If he went as Ronin, then they worked together as equals.

As much as they both had agreed they couldn't just pick up where the relationship left off six years before, that's pretty much what happened anyway. They were a part of each other, and it seemed pointless to try and go back to casual dating. In the first week or two, it was a little awkward, but things settled into the old groove once again. Both were somewhat relieved to find there really was something deeper between them, and not just echoes of the past bursting forth as a result of intense circumstances. Plus, there was the fact they were older now, and a little more practical. They would always have those early years of romantic memories. And really, the romance never really faded between them.

For the second time in less than a year, Wade actually came out in public. Though this time it wasn't to stop Kim's wedding, but rather to serve as Ron's best man. This tweaked Rufus a little, but he got over it and wound up sleeping through the ceremony anyway.

After the wedding, there was dancing. And Wade was beginning to feel overwhelmed by it all and was about to excuse himself to go home. But Kim's maid of honor came to ask him something.

She had been Kim's maid of honor at the earlier wedding, the one that Wade had broken up. Something about his bravery impressed her. Then when he came as Ron's best man, she thought he actually looked pretty cute in his tux. Besides, he was twenty-one now, and she was twenty-seven. Such age differences didn't matter so much when you were an adult.

So at the reception she went over and asked him to dance.

"Oh!" Wade stammered, "I…gosh…I don't…"

"Oh, come on Wade, you can dance with me, can't you?" She purred.

"I…no…I mean yes…I …I don't know how to…really… I'm really sorry."

"It's a slow dance! It's really easy, I'll show you!"

And, ignoring his protests, Monique took his hand and led him out to the floor.

* * *

The cool night breeze was coming off the ocean. Small waves rippled against the sand and made almost no noise at all. Ron wondered if the hint of tropical fruit in the air was natural, or was there some artificial scent sprayer meant to impress the tourists? They were taking their honeymoon on a private island in the South Pacific. There were no phones, no TV, no Kimunicator, and no people for at least ten miles in every direction. The small bungalow sat just up from the beach on a tiny island that was part of a chain of tiny islands. Every morning, a boat came by and brought them their meals for the day, and then they were left in privacy the rest of the time. 

Ron was leaning on the rail of the balcony, watching the moonlight play across the water. Kim strolled out, slipped her arm through his and laid her head on his shoulder.

"Kimberly Anne Stoppable" she said with a sigh of contentment. She would be keeping 'Kim Possible' as her professional name, but the personalized checks, the Christmas cards, and all of that would say 'Kim and Ron Stoppable', or some similar variation.

"So what's the story behind the Stoppable family name, anyway?" Kim asked in a dreamy voice.

"Ah," Ron said quietly, "That's an interesting tale. My great, great-grandfather Nikolai Wojidubikowski immigrated to America from Eastern Europe. He barely spoke any English at all, but he was fiercely determined to make it in the new world. So when the immigrations agent at Ellis Island asked him his name he said 'I am Nikolai, I am unstoppable!', and that's what the agent wrote on his immigration certificate: 'N. Stoppable.'"

"Why didn't he do anything to correct it?" Kim was curious.

"He thought that's how America worked," Ron responded, "Come to America, you get a new life, and a new name. He was actually very proud of it. So we've been the Stoppables ever since."

Kim smiled and laid her head back down on his shoulder. It could not have been a more perfect evening. The breeze was cool, but not cold, the waves were soothing, the air smelled slightly of tropical fruits. They both stood there, going back over their favorite memories of the wedding, and of each other. Sometimes, when you're deeply in love, and everything just seems to be right with the world, you find that you and the one you love are thinking the exact same thing.

Kim took her head off his shoulder and they looked deep into each other's eyes.

"I love you," they said in unison.

"Jinx!" she said lightly, taking him by the hand and leading him inside, "You owe me a baby."

"Booyah!"

THE END.


	16. Epilogue

Author's note: Fair warning, this is all fluff and humor. No action, no suspense, no cliffhangers. It's just a sort of extended happy ending of sorts, kind of like Return Of The King, but without six different endings and the embarrassing scene where Frodo wakes up and everyone comes in like the introduction of a basketball team line-up…

But I digress.

Anyway, I'll be out of town until May 20, and then will come back prepared to do some serious reading. The reviews are nothing short of overwhelming, and I thank each and every one of you who left one. I have them all saved on the same file as my story.

And now, I think I will close this little speech before the "I-just-finished-a-story-I-really-enjoyed-writing" depression sets in. Consider this epilogue a big "thank you" to everyone who read REUNION.

Cheers,

G-Go (AKA Garrett York)

* * *

Epilogue

The cool morning breeze was coming off the ocean. Small waves rippled against the sand and made almost no noise at all. Ron wondered if the hint of tropical fruit in the air was natural, or was there some artificial scent sprayer meant to impress the tourists?

Then he wondered what the sudden feeling of déjà vu was about.

He looked around the beach for a bit, and then resumed unloading the supplies from the Ninjet. Kim and Ronnie-Anne would return from the village soon, and if he didn't have the stuff unloaded, it would put them a little behind schedule.

The air was warm and humid, and it didn't take long for Ron to work up a sweat. He stopped for a moment to wipe his forehead.

"Hey", Wade said, "You can't just leave me to unload all this stuff by myself."

Ron looked at the Wadebot RX Mark Six with a sarcastic gleam in his eye.

"You're not unloading anything, dude. You're sitting in a chair back in Middleton. I'm the only one here who's doing any manual labor."

"Hey," Wade protested, "The humidity and sand isn't exactly easy on the servos."

"You're telling me the Wadebot actually get fatigued?"

"In a manner of speaking, yes." Wade answered.

"OK, fine," Ron relented, "Whatever. When your machine actually begins to sweat, then I'll consider taking up a more equal workload."

Wad said nothing, but Ron could hear him punching several buttons. The Wadebot began to glisten with a fine sheen of mist.

"Oh, that's very funny," Ron said sarcastically, "You really went to a lot of trouble to mess with my mind, didn't you?"

"No, not really," Wade said sheepishly, "It's just coolant to keep the Central Processor from overheating. Wind cools the liquid, which regulates past the CPU and allows the Wadebot to function even in this tropical heat. Messing with your mind is just a bonus."

Ron sighed and resumed unloading the supplies.

"I believe your wife and daughter have returned" Wade said, the bot pointed off in the distance.

"Yep," he agreed, "Here they come."

Over a low rise, leading what looked like two farm animals, appeared his wife, Kim, and their six-year-old daughter, Veronica Anne Stoppable. They called her Ronnie-Anne, or sometimes just Ronnie. She was practically a mirror image of her mother at that age; bright red hair pulled up in pigtails, freckles, deep green eyes. To complete the image, she was dressed in child-sized cargo pants with a black sweater. Mom didn't think she was old enough for bare midriffs yet, however.

Mom's sweater didn't leave a bare midriff either. Although she looked terrific as always, Kim had gained a little modesty since giving birth to the children. Her bare midriff days were behind her.

Kim was leading a tall, white llama, while Ronnie-Anne guided a small donkey. They stepped from the rise out onto the sand and approached the aircraft.

The Ninjet Mark Four had evolved into a family vehicle over the years. There were two rear seats, one with a child seat anchored to it. The child seat was for their youngest, a boy whom they named Timothy James Stoppable, now eighteen months old. They were already calling him TJ. TJ did not come with them today, however. Dr. Grandma Possible was babysitting him back in Middleton.

"Aren't you guys finished yet?" Kim called when they were still a ways off.

"I can't get this guy to work any faster!" Wade called back through the bot.

"I'm being harassed by a machine," Ron complained. "That's why I can't get any work done!"

Ron halted work to greet his family. He kissed his wife and picked up his daughter.

"How did you like the village, sweetie?" he asked her.

"The donkey stable was stinky." She responded, holding her nose.

"How come you didn't get two of them?"

"The other donkey in the village had a hurt foot, so we had to get a llama." His daughter answered.

Their mission was to take supplies to a mountaintop lair, but Wade was getting some strange readings and couldn't tell if the lair had air defense systems. They decided to play it safe and land on the beach, then haul the supplies up the mountain by pack animal.

Ron set Ronnie-Anne down again, she continued to talk. "Mommy says I can't go on the mission with you!" she complained.

"You _are_ on the mission with us, honey." Ron responded.

"We talked about this before we left," Kim crouched down on one knee to talk to her daughter, "This is your first mission, and you got to come to the village with me to get the animals. But now you have to stay here on the beach with Rufus and Wade."

"But I want to go up to the lair with you guys!" the little girl protested.

"Don't argue with your mother, Veronica," Ron only called her that in times such as this.

Ronnie-Anne Stoppable pulled out her most dangerous weapon, and unleashed its full strength upon her father. Her eyebrows arched, her eyes got very big, and her lower lip protruded slightly further out than her upper lip.

Puppy Dog Pout set on full power.

Ron melted.

"Oh all right" he said scampering over to the cockpit of the Ninjet. He retrieved a small duffel, unzipped it, and pulled out a tiny grappler, handing it to his daughter.

"Ron!" Kim protested. She crouched down and examined the little grappler her daughter was eagerly turning over in her hands.

"Aww, that's so cute," Kim said, then straightened up and glared at her husband, "And so very wrong!"

"Puppy Dog Pout!" Ron said defensively.

"You're staying here on the beach, young lady," Kim said firmly.

And even though she knew her mother was immune to it, Ronnie-Anne tried the Puppy Dog Pout on her anyway.

"No way, honey," Kim said casually, "I invented that look. You're staying here."

Ron, Kim, and the Wadebot began loading supplies on to the pack animals.

"She gets it from you, you know." Ron said half-accusingly to his wife, "In fact, I think she gets everything from you."

"There's some of you in her!" Kim insisted. They both turned to look at their little girl.

Ronnie-Anne was suddenly distracted by a butterfly, turned to chase after it, tripped and fell face first into the sand.

"And there it is!" Kim observed.

"Kim." The Wadebot cut in, "I'm getting a call from your mom. Want me to patch it through?"

"Please and thank you, Wade." Kim turned to look at the face plate of the Wadebot. Mrs. Dr. Possible's face appeared, "What's up, Mom?"

"Hi, Kim." She chirped, "I'm having trouble remembering whether TJ has any dairy allergies or not."

"None that we know of, why?"

"The baby was fussy all morning and we couldn't understand why. But then your father fed him a microwave burrito. He stopped fussing, which was nice, but I'm not sure if the cheese is going to be OK for him."

Kim threw a quick glare at Ron who continued to load supplies and pretended not to be listening.

"TJ won't have any allergic reactions to the cheese, Mom. But he will have other unpleasant reactions. You'll probably want to go get more diapers." Kim said, exasperated.

"Oh, I've already sent your father to the store for them." Dr. Grandma Possible acknowledged.

"Alrighty," Kim acknowledged pleasantly, "That's pretty much all I can tell you. Sorry about the mess."

"Oh, it's no trouble," Kim's mother beamed, "You know when you were this age, you used to fill your diapers with-"

"Woops!" Came Wade's voice, "I think the signal got cut off."

"That's terrible," Kim said unconvincingly, then she threw an annoyed look at Ron, "You told my Dad about the burritos?"

"You know how TJ is with the fussiness. He's just a big whiner. The burritos calm him down!" Ron stated plainly.

"Wonder where he gets that from?" Kim asked with a touch of sarcasm.

"I didn't want your parents to have to put up with a fussy baby," Ron defended himself.

Ronnie-Anne walked over, spitting sand. "Is TJ being fussy again?"

"Yep!" Kim said pleasantly, "I think he misses his big sister."

"Did you tell Grandma to put a burrito in the microwave?" The young girl asked.

Kim rolled her eyes, bringing them to gaze at her husband, _You are so busted._

Ron grinned back at her, putting the last of the supplies on the little donkey. A far away voice was heard from the Wadebot.

"Wade! Your daughter took her baby monitor apart again, and she needs her diaper changed."

"Baby, I'm sorry," Wade called back over his shoulder, "But I'm on a mission right now."

"You're what?" The woman walked up behind Wade and leaned into view, her face appeared on the screen, "Oh, hey guys!"

"Hey Monique!" Kim responded, "How's Ariel?"

"Her father keeps putting the baby monitor too close to the crib," Monique answered giving Wade a very light smack to the back of the head, "And she keeps taking it apart."

"Is she hurting herself?" Kim asked, concerned.

"No," Wade answered quickly, casting a defensive glance at his wife.

"The girl takes the battery out first," Monique explained, "Then she takes the monitor apart, and disconnects every single, tiny part and lays them out in front of her in perfect little rows. Every time I go in there, the crib looks like a miniature electronics factory."

"I've got similar problems," Kim said sympathetically, "Guess whose father gave her a grappler?"

Kim stepped aside. The camera on the Wadebot trained in on Ron, who was crouched behind his daughter with his arms around her, helping her steady the grappler. Ronnie-Anne pulled the trigger and a tiny hook shot forth, trailed by about six feet of cable. The little girl squealed with delight.

"Did you make a tiny grappler for that child?" Monique was heard interrogating her husband.

"Of course not!", Wade protested, "I made it for Ron."

"I think we better get moving if we're going to make it back by tonight," Ron informed Kim.

"OK", Kim acknowledged, turning back to face the Wadebot, "We still on for girl's night out this Friday?"

"You know it, Kim!" Monique said enthusiastically "Why don't we go see 'Remember My Love' at the movies?"

"Excellent!" Kim confirmed.

Ron, Wade, and Rufus all made gagging noises.

"Ugh! Chick flick!" Rufus whined.

"You boys have a problem with quality cinema?" Kim demanded.

"It's not quality cinema-" Wade began.

"-unless something blows up." Ronnie-Anne finished.

Ron pretended to become emotional, "That's my girl!" he said with a fake sob. He leaned down and kissed her on the forehead.

Kim rolled her eyes and then surveyed the pack animals.

"Which one do you want?" she asked her husband, "You want the donkey or the llama?"

Ron looked at them both. The donkey appeared to be gentle, tame, almost sleepy. The other animal spit in Ron's direction and seemed to be regarding him with contempt.

"So not the llama," Ron said firmly.

They took the reigns of their respective animals – the llama continuing to spit in Ron's direction – and led them up away from the beach toward the distant mountain near the center of the island. Just before they reached the tree line they heard a distant voice.

"Bye, Mommy", the little girl called, "Bye, Daddy!"

They turned to wave. Ronnie-Anne grappled the wing of the Ninjet and swung herself up onto it with little trouble, and waved to them enthusiastically. They waved back and then turned back toward the trees.

"Terrific," Kim said, sighing, "Now we're going to have to grapple-proof the house."

It was clear, however, that both parents were secretly pleased with what they had just seen.

* * *

Life was full of activity for the Stoppables. And with a daughter going into the first grade, the busy-ness only seemed to be increasing. Veronica had come along about eighteen months into their marriage, and they were ready for a child by that time. Timothy James had been an unexpected surprise, but a very happy one. He, too had his mother's red hair and green eyes, and they loved him every bit as much as his sister.

Veronica inherited a guardian angel almost from the day she was born. Rufus was quite taken with her, and very fiercely protective. For six years now, he never once left her side, refusing to even go on missions if it meant he couldn't keep his eye on her. He would walk with her to school, sleep in her little backpack, and then see that she got safely home every day. Rufus glared suspiciously at any strangers that even walked near her, and once had to take down a Pit Bull that had gotten loose and gone after her. Whatever Rufus had done, that dog never so much as sniffed at a stranger ever again. Veronica Anne Stoppable was probably the only person on earth who had a naked mole rat for a bodyguard.

Hero work for the Stoppables was as constant as it ever was. There were always villains, and they always needed thwarting. Kim envied Ron a little for the luxury he had of choosing what role he would play in each mission. Sometimes he was Ronin, sometimes he was Kim Possible's sidekick. On occasion he liked not having to call the shots on a mission, and was very comfortable letting his wife take the lead. On a rare occasion, Kim Possible and Ronin would disagree on a course of action to take during a mission. But that's marriage. Sometimes there's going to be conflict when you're saving the world. Ron enjoyed the variety.

In fact, he once went on a mission as the Fearless Ferret.

They were in Go City for Kim's college reunion when Aviarius attacked. He was menacing Go City with an army of giant mutant Puffins. Ron hadn't bothered to bring any of his usual mission clothes (Kim was in the habit of taking hers everywhere), but he did have his Fearless Ferret costume. So they teamed up with Team Go to thwart the villain. At first, the members of Team Go thought it was kind of cool. Some of them were big Fearless Ferret fans.

But Ron buried himself in the part, and spouted dialogue like "The Fearless Ferret and friends will foil the feats of this fiendish feathery foe!" the whole weekend.

He annoyed Team Go and drove Kim nuts.

Of course, Kim forgot all about her mild embarrassment when Hego became curious and asked why Ron had brought a Fearless Ferret costume with him to Go City.

"I can't answer that," Ron declared.

"Why not?" Hego persisted.

"Because" Ron answered indignantly, "If a married couple want to play 'Fearless Ferret rescues the frisky French maid' in the privacy of their hotel room, well, then that's no one else's business!"

Kim was utterly mortified.

And Team Go couldn't help wondering with amusement just exactly what was in Kim's suitcase back at the hotel.

Back at home, Kim was rebuilding the remains of her research. Because she'd seen what Ray had done with it, she decided to start from scratch, and work on technology that couldn't so easily be used for evil. It was slow going, sometimes monotonous, but her hero duties added a nice variety to her occupation.

Ron was a full time hero and a stay-at-home dad. Nothing else seemed to suit him, and they weren't exactly hard up for cash. Ron found a great deal of fulfillment in the luxury of being able to be home with his children. Though diaper changing wasn't exactly a pleasant activity.

For the first time in their lives, the Twins parted company after high school. Tim went to college and got several degrees in various scientific fields. He returned home and set up the Middleton Aeronautics Laboratory and Research Facility. He and his assistants were working on a faster-than-light propulsion drive system for space travel. Tim married a girl he'd been close to in high school and they were expecting their first child.

Jim went to work full time for Global Justice and quickly rose through the ranks to become a top agent, reporting only to either the President or Senior Director Of Operations Will Du. Doctor Director had moved on to politics. Jim often found himself working together with Ronin or Team Possible. He was not married, but Jim's heart did belong to someone.

She was known simply as Arianna; a supervillian who was constantly trying to take over South America. Jim fell in love with her the first time he thwarted her, and she fell pretty hard for him. Arianna made several unsuccessful attempts to turn away from evil, but found she couldn't help herself. Jim knew there was good in her, he could feel it, and it was always with a heavy heart that he would defeat her plans. Theirs was a love of the most forbidden kind.

* * *

They left the pack animals outside and crept into the lair. Wade managed to shut down most of the security systems, but he was having trouble with some of the readings coming from inside. They kept in touch with him via the Kimunicator. There were no detectable floor alarms, and no motion sensors they could find.

They made their way into the large central chamber. Electronic equipment was strewn about haphazardly. Banks of computers hummed quietly. A large view screen occupied one entire wall.

Then Kim spied something near the center of the room. There was a waist-high pedestal of sorts. On it was a bassinet. This was what they had come to investigate.

Team Possible very quietly made their way over to the bassinet and peaked inside. There, asleep, was a baby girl that couldn't have been more than six months old. She had a shock of raven-black hair on her head and her skin was a very pale turquoise; the colors of blue and green blended together.

Suddenly, an alarm. Lights flashed and sirens blared. Shego seemed to drop out of nowhere. She snatched up her daughter and flared up her fists.

"I knew you'd come to take her from me!", Shego cried, clutching the child to her chest with one hand and waving her other fist menacingly. The baby burst into a fit of crying and wailing.

"No," Kim held up her hands in an attempt to appease her foe, "That's not why we're here."

"Lies," Shego shouted.

The alarms abruptly cut off. Drakken appeared on a large terrace above them.

"So, Kim Possible…er…yes, uh…" Drakken stammered, trying to remember something, "Is it still Kim Possible or do you go by Kim….something something? I can't remember your married name."

"Stoppable." Kim said, then turned to her husband, "You know, that really _is_ annoying."

"Try putting up with it for a couple of decades," Ron replied.

"No matter!" Drakken continued, "You will not take the girl from us!"

"Dude," Ron said, "We're not here to take the little girl."

Kim took a step toward Shego.

"Stay back!" she practically screamed. Her fists were still ablaze, there was a wild, desperately defensive look in her eye. She continued to clutch the child to her; the baby's crying got louder and more wretched.

"Stop that!" Came a shrill voice.

Everyone turned to see Ronnie-Anne standing at the entrance to the lair. Her grappler was clipped to her belt, while Rufus stood on her shoulders, his arms folded grimly across his tiny chest. Ronine-Anne had an angry, defiant look on her face. She began to walk in determined strides straight for Shego.

"You stop that now! You're hurting her!" she hollered in an authoritative tone.

No one said anything, and no one moved except Kim who took a protective step toward her daughter. Kim's arm was gently grabbed from behind and held firmly. She turned and looked at her husband.

_Wait,_ his eyes ordered. He sensed something.

Ronnie-Anne marched right up to Shego and stuck her arms out.

"Let me hold her," she ordered.

Shego stared down at the little girl, too surprised to say anything.

"Let me hold her!" Ronnie-Anne said more forcefully. She looked directly into Shego's eyes, unafraid and unmoved.

The light emanating from Shego's fists faded and disappeared. The wild look went out of her eye. Not really knowing why, Shego leaned over and placed her baby into Veronica's arms. After a decade and a half of battle, Shego had finally been conquered by the six-year-old daughter of Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable. And she never even threw a punch.

"You give that baby back to Shego, little girl!" Drakken bellowed from his terrace perch.

"You be quiet, mean blue man!" Ronnie-Anne hollered back.

Drakken clapped a hand to his forehead in frustration, "How many generations of disrespect must I endure from one family?"

Ronnie-Ann ignored him, gently rocked the baby back and forth and made cooing noises. The baby's crying died down, and then ceased altogether.

"This is how I hold my brother," She informed Shego, "He likes it."

The baby began to coo and gurgle in response. Shego was in utter disbelief. Ronnie-Anne lowered her face to the baby's and rubbed noses with her.

"Tickly, tickly, tickly!" she said in her best baby talk.

The baby let out an excited giggle.

Shego's jaw dropped.

"You made her laugh!" Drakken cried, incredulous, "Do it again!"

Ronnie-Anne repeated the process and again, the baby erupted in giggles. Her tiny fists blazed forth in a delighted turquoise glow.

"Marvelous!" Drakken declared gleefully, "She's never done that before!"

Kim quietly stepped up behind her daughter.

"What's her name?" Kim asked softly.

"Kimono", Shego answered. She couldn't take her eyes off her daughter's laughter.

Kim turned to look at Ron, _Kimono Drakken?_

"You realize the kids at school are just going to call her 'Kim' for short," Ron observed.

Shego looked up abruptly, her eyes wide. It hadn't occurred to her that she'd inadvertently named her daughter after her arch foe.

"No they won't, Ron", Kim insisted, trying not to set Shego off.

Ronnie-Anne continued to make the baby girl giggle and squeal with delight. Ron took out his grappler and hoisted himself up to the terrace where Drakken stood.

"Ronald," he acknowledged dismissively.

"Dude," Ron acknowledged back. He looked up at a huge, ray type weapon.

"What's the ray gun do, Dr. D?" he asked firmly.

Drakken perked up at this. The evil gleam came into his eye and he rubbed his hands together vigorously.

"Watch this," he ordered Ron, then barked, "Shego!"

Shego looked up and uttered an annoyed sigh, "Again? It's not necessary right now!"

"Just once, Shego, just once can you do as I ask? Especially in front of the visitors?" He complained.

Shego rolled her eyes, "Fine!"

She took baby Kimono from Veronica's arms and laid her gently in the bassinet on the pedestal. Then she advised Kim and Ronnie-Anne to step back. Drakken powered up the machine and swung it around to point at his daughter. The Stoppables watched, horrified, as a pale, yellowish beam blazed forth and enveloped the baby. The baby was lifted into the air. Then, suddenly, Kimono's diaper disappeared as if dissipating into thin air. A sort of mist seemed to swirl around the baby, and then suddenly, from that mist a new diaper formed, clean and already fitted to the child. Kimono was set gently back down into the bassinet, and the air was filled with the fresh scent of lemons.

"I call it the Diapertron Three Thousand!" Drakken declared triumphantly.

Ron stared at him for five seconds, "I will give you one million dollars for this thing."

Inexplicably, Drakken lifted his fist to his face, turned his palm outward, and extended his pinky finger until it touched the corner of his mouth.

"One _million_ dollars?" he asked.

"Uh…yeah," Ron replied, perplexed, "Dude, why'd you do that?"

"No idea", Drakken said dismissively.

"Anyway, name your price." Ron continued.

"Are you serious?" Drakken asked.

"Note serious face." Ron said gravely, pointing at himself. "Do you know how much money you could make with this thing?"

"That would be nice", mused Drakken, "We are a little strapped for cash. The mayor of the local village paid me to develop a system that sprays the scent of tropical fruit into the air all over the island."

"I thought that's what it might be," Ron said knowingly.

"Yes, well, the tourists seem to like it. Anyway, the money I got from that job didn't go very far." Drakken informed him.

"Yeah, that's why we're here," Ron responded, "We've got baby supplies tied to some pack animals outside."

"No, thanks," Drakken said with a dismissive wave, "We have plenty of baby supplies already."

"Yes, we know," Ron continued, "We got reports of a bunch of baby equipment thefts. You can't just go out and steal whatever you want."

"How else am I supposed to get it?" Drakken whined.

"Buy it!' Ron said succinctly, "We paid for the stuff you stole, but from now on, you're gonna have to buy all of Kimono's things."

"As I said, we're strapped for cash," Drakken repeated.

"Which is where this thing comes in." Ron said, indicating the Diapertron, "You find a way to make this thing small enough to fit in a house, and you can practically print your own money."

"Been there, done that…the money printing thing, I mean," Drakken declared.

"You know what I'm saying," Ron said testily, "I bet my friend Wade would pay a bunch of money for one of these, too!"

Kim and Shego had been talking quietly, while Ronnie-Anne and Rufus resumed playing with Kimono. The baby was delighted by the antics of the naked mole rat. At the mention of Wade, Kim whipped out her Kimunicator.

"I meant to call Wade and ask him about the Wadebot. Wade? Are you there?"

"Kim! I'm sorry I didn't call you earlier but something's happened to the Wadebot! I've been trying to contact it, but can't seem to!"

Kim looked down at her daughter, who looked back with eyes as innocent as a baby bunny. She then looked to Rufus, who shrugged.

"Override switch," the mole rat said.

Kim glared up at her husband, "You showed her where the override switch was?"

"Three words, Kim, "Ron hollered back, "Puppy. Dog. Pout!"

"Sorry, Wade," Kim said apologetically.

"No problem," Wade chuckled. The Kimunicator blinked off.

Up on the terrace, Drakken had an observant question.

"Am I to understand your daughter employs some sort of pouty expression to manipulate you into getting what she wants?"

"Yes," Ron growled, "But not nearly as much as her mother does."

"Hmmm", Drakken said, thinking, "I might be able to develop a focused beam that, when concentrated on the lower jaw, relaxes all the muscles, rendering a person unable to stick out her lower lip."

Again, Ron stared at him for five seconds. "I'll give you _two_ million dollars for that!"

"Ron!" his wife hollered up at him.

"Sorry, Kim" Ron called down sheepishly, then turned and whispered to Drakken, "We'll talk."

"Understood," Drakken whispered back.

* * *

I wish I could say at this point that everyone was friends forever after. But that wouldn't be quite accurate. Drakken and Shego were, at heart, Drakken and Shego. There were one or two more attempts to take over the world in the ensuing years, but Drakken ultimately lost his enthusiasm for it. Shego was a devoted mother. She and Kim battled a few times, but that tapered off as well. Every now and then, the Stoppables would drop in on the lair and check on Kimono and her parents. Eventually – many years later - they would all have to learn to get along, when Kimono and TJ turned them all into in-laws.

* * *

An hour after having left the baby supplies at the lair, the Stoppable family was walking down the slope of the mountain, leading the animals back to their owner. The sun was low, almost ready to sink into the ocean. The sky was colored all manner of crimson, and orange and deep purple, the first of the stars were beginning to come out. Veronica was just being informed that she'd be getting a time out when they got home. Both parents were very proud of her, but she still had disregarded their orders to stay at the beach, and as they had discussed, disregarding orders on a mission was against the rules.

Ronnie-Ann pouted for a little while, but got over it. She walked between her parents. Rufus was asleep in her pocket.

"Mommy", Ronnie-Anne spoke up after awhile, "What was your favorite mission?"

Ron's ears perked up, he was curious to know himself.

"This one" Kim said without hesitating.

"Really?", Ron asked, surprised.

"Oh, not them," Kim said with a wave of her head back toward the lair. She stopped walking and so did the others. She picked up her daughter and placed her in Ron's arms, then stepped back, gazing at them.

"You guys are the most difficult, and most rewarding mission I've ever been on. And I've loved every minute of it." She said softly.

"TJ too?" Ronnie-Anne asked.

"TJ too." Kim confirmed.

Veronica giggled and kissed her father on the nose, then held out her arms to her mother. Kim stepped to them and the three of them embraced. Ronnie-Anne then put her hands over her eyes as her parents kissed each other. She had her eyes covered for quite some time.

"I'd be your sidekick any day, KP" Ron said playfully when she finally pulled back from him.

"I know," she said, smiling warmly at him, "But on this particular mission, you've always been my partner. And there could never be any other."

They held each other for another minute or so, then took up the reigns of the animals and began walking down the hill again, toward the setting sun.

"What do you say we get some ice cream on the way home?" Ron suggested.

"Booyah!" Ronnie-Anne squealed with delight.


End file.
